Harry Potter and the Crescent Moon
by MrZ1289
Summary: The Legendary Wizard, Merlin, committed unspeakable acts on his deathbed. With these acts, he is able to come back from the grave in the distant future. However, he doesn't come alone and he also brings back an old enemy...
1. Death of Merlin

**This is my first attempt at FanFiction works so cut me a break.**

**Disclaimer: Hey Guess what? I don't own any of this. Well, I do own two characters that will come up later. Ok, I don't own them but I made them up.**

Old Magic

The old man could no longer walk. He was perminantly confinded to his bed. He hated this. He loved being up and involved in the daily life of the people around him. However, at almost 200 years of age, this was no longer possible.

Merlin had lived a full life. He had helped defend Britain from the worst of the worst. There was no one of his caliber left in Britain. Which was probably a good thing, seeing as how he could go to the bathroom without summoning his son from outside. He hated what he had become. He had worked so hard to stop himself from aging. He knew that Britain would need him after his death and there was nothing he could do.

Or was there? Merlin was an expert in the field of Old Magic. But, secretly, he knew more than he let on. His experiences and knowledge did not just consist of your everyday, garden variety spellwork. No, his knowledge also consisted of something darker and more sinister. He had heard of the studies by his newly created Magic Academy on immortality. He knew that they had discovered an old dark magic. Magic so awful and disgusting they didn't even wish to share it with him.

But he must know! Merlin knew there was no one out there that could defend Britain as well as he. However, when the process of creating a Horcrux was explained to him, he couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe that he could be that awful, that terrible. He knew the wizarding world would need him, but did they need him so bad that he need to become a shell, a shadow of his former self. To do this, he would have to forsake emotion, other than that of rage and anger and hate. He knew what he must do. He knew a sacrifice must be mad to ensure that the wizarding world would continue on. He hated himself. He hated what he would become.

Finally coming to his senses, he called his family into the room. Slowly, he told them of his plan. The longer he went, the more shocked his family was. They knew that he was a bit arrogant and often believed himself to be the only competent wizard on the face of the Earth, but this was too far! As his wife went to leave the room, her body froze and she knew that she was beaten.

With his last ounce of energy, he got out of his bed and went to his wife. He had been with this beautiful woman for over 80 years. They had shared almost their entire lives together. They had children and grandchildren and even a few great-grandchildren. However, even she was expendable. He approached her with tears in his eyes. Tears that went down into his silvery beard. He looked into her own tear-filled and frightened eyes and said the two words she never thought she would ever her him say to her.

"Avada Kedavra!" He took her now-limp body and laid on the floor crying. Knowing that the time to perform the spell was running short. So he called his son back in the room and told him to look in the corner and close his eyes.

He had picked his son to become his Horcrux for a couple reasons. First, he loved his son and he wanted to make sure that a part of him always stayed with him. Second, and most important, he knew his son was an incredibly powerful wizard and he had a better chance of staying around than a locket or a tiara or something of the like.

Merlin then began the work of creating a Horcrux. It was horrible. He did it, again with tears in his eyes and fear in his heart. He hated himself more as he looked at the now unrecognizable corpse of his wife. He then told his son to leave the house, knowing the destruction he was about to cause.

He laid back down on his bed, preparing himself for the final step of his plan. He took his wand and placed it in the center of his forehead. His arm quivered with anticipation. When he had decided on this course of action, he knew that he could not bear to live another day without his love. So, he decided that ending his own life would be the only way to end things properly. He knew that he would need all his hate to summon the power to cast this curse. And this hate he had. All he could do, all he could think about was how much he hated himself. Over and over in his head, he told himself how much a failure he must have been with his life to have resort to the Dark Arts as a way to prolong his life. And with this, he killed himself, using the same two words that he had killed his wife.

Pain! He never thought about this being painful. He had assumed this death to be quiet and harmless. However, he realized the problem. Because of his Horcrux, he had been forcibly ripped from his body. His soul separated from his body. He now knew that he had to wait for the time when the Wizarding World was at his lowest. When it had no hope. Then, he would return. Either that or wait for someone to discover him. Either way, he had no idea how long that would be....


	2. Peace

Peace

Harry had been working at the ministry for nearly 10 years. He knew almost every Department Head and was on good terms with most of them. Harry also loved his job. While he was less busy now since the death of the Carrows almost six months ago. They had been hiding out all over Britain hoping not to be found, all the while they had been planing to assassinate Minster of Magic Kingsley Shacklebolt.

However, their plans had been thwarted by Harry and Ronald Weasley, the two best Aurors in Britain. They had traced the Carrows back to Hogsmeade where they had been hiding in the Shrieking Shack. While neither said anything, both Harry and Ron believed that it was quite stupid of them to hide somewhere so close to Hogwarts, where their prescence was great. In fact, since the death of Voldemort ten years ago, almost half of the Aurors in the Ministry had been stationed at Hogwarts.

Joseph Mills, the Head of the Auror Department, felt that this was the best way to protect the students from anyone that may want to hurt them. But Harry felt that this was unneccesary.

"Who was left to hurt them?" Harry had wondered aloud more than once. Voldemort was gone, along with Bellatrix, the Carrows, and half the old Death Eaters. The ones that were still alive were old enough to be in a retirement home. Harry knew all about danger. He had been born into danger. He had lived danger. He was also ready to be done with danger and he believed he really was done with it. He had rounded up every known Death Eater and put them behind bars.

Harry's daily routine was quite rigid. He woke up each morning at 12 Grimmauld Place and took a quick shower. Then, he simply Apparated himself to a location just behind the Ministry. A short walk later, he was inside where he was constantly greeted with "Good Morning, Mr. Potter" and "Hello, Mr. Potter." He hated the term "mister." He felt that just because you wanted to show respect for someone didn't mean that you couldn't call them by their first name.

He would then take a short elevator ride to Level 2, where the Auror Office was. In the years since the Second Wizarding War, the Auror Office had become the newly formed Department of Aurors. They were a Department of equal level of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, which used to be its parent Department. Much else had changed in the Ministry. It used to be that Head of Departments got special offices, but this was no longer. After secrets held in the office of Dolores Umbridge were exposed, it was decided that while high-ranking Ministry Officials should have offices of their own, they should not be entirely inaccessible.

After the elevator ride, Harry would walk the short distance to his office. Harry's office was much more decorated than most others. His love of Quidditch was a main compenent of this. Posters of famous players, including former teammate and Gryffindor Captain Oliver Wood, who was the League's Most Oustanding Player, adorned the walls of his office. They all said their greetings as Harry took his place behind his desk. All of the small office were pictures of many different events. There was a picture of him after beating the Hungarian Horntail in the first task of the Triwizard Tournament. Another picture showed Ron, Hermione, and himself in front of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry after recieving their Honorary Degrees from the school. Another picture was one he didn't remember taking. It was a picture of himself with his parents as a toddler. He looked at this picture everyday and wondered what life would have been like if they hadn't have been killed.

But, his favorite picture was one that he took in Albania. After the Battle of Hogwarts, Harry paid for everyone to go on a vacation. All the Weasleys, Harry, Hermione and her family, and Teddy Lupin made the trip. Most of the people on the trip thought he just wanted to get away from England for awhile. But, there was another reason. Harry wanted to see what kind of place _he_ had inhabited while in Albania. So, while the rest of his adopted family enjoyed themselves, Harry snuck away for an afternoon. He wondered deep into the jungle. Every so often, he would come across a skeleton or a corpse. Eventually, more and more appeared and he knew he was heading in the right direction. After hours of walking, he found the place. He knew it. There was no bed, for he had no bodily form. But, there was an area where he resided. There was a small bed, made for the size of rat. Harry knew that Pettigrew must have stayed here at least once, although how he got away from Ron was beyond him.

When he got back, he was met with a cacophony of sound. Everyone from Mrs. Weasley down to little Teddy was telling him how dangerous it was that he would just disappear into the jungle for a few hours. However, when Harry explained what he had been doing, the family calmed down and everything was back to normal. This is when Harry got an idea. He got one of the locals to come and take a picture of everyone that was on the trip. And although there were some obvious omissions (Fred, Remus, and Tonks), it was the first picture he had with his family. He cherished this picture more than any item he had and that included his Invisibility Cloak.

Harry's official title was "Assistant to the Head of the Department of Aurors." However, most people around the Ministry believed (and rightfully so) that Harry pretty much ran the department. While Mills was the public face of the Aurors, Harry was the brains behind the entire operation. He coordinated almost every mission the Aurors went on. Thus, when someone had a problem, they came to Harry. Ironcially enough, it was Joseph Mills who came to Harry with a problem first that morning.

"Harry" Joseph started, "We need at least three Aurors to help with the Minister's speech this weekend. So far, I have you and Weasley."

"So, what's your problem?" Harry asked.

"Every other Auror is on assignment and will be either busy or out of London" Joseph stated.

"Well, how about you do it with us?" Harry suggested.

"Are you serious? I haven't been in the field in ten years! A Squib would be better out there than me!" Joseph exclaimed.

Harry thought that this was for the better. Everyone in the Ministry knew that Joseph Mills had gotten as far as he had gotten because his father had been the American Minister of Magic and he was good friends with the Minister. He wasn't all that good at spellwork and his defense skills were definitely sub-par. However, if there was one plus to having Mills around, it was that he was a very good delegator. He was very good with organization and was perfectly fit to be a non-field Department Head.

"Well, how about I get Hermione Granger to do it? She isn't on doing anything that I know of and she would definitely be able to handle it"

"Ok, but if this goes bad because she isn't an Auror, you catch the heat for this one." Joseph stated before he walked out of his office

**

* * *

**

The office of Hermione Granger was noticibly different than that of Harry Potter. While she had a few select pictures (including the same one Harry cherished so much), almost every other item in her office pertained to her job. She had almost every law book the Ministry could have given her. She also had enough paper in different folders and files that Staples would have gone nuts. She would have shared this joke with Ron during her date last night. That was, until she remembered he would have no idea what Staples was, and she dropped the joke.

Hermione had been made Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement about three weeks ago. Her impact was felt immediately. She, along with Harry and Ron, were successful in changing many laws that had favored pure blood families. There were many that believed that she had the potential to be the Minister of Magic someday. While she often stated that she wasn't thinking about that, she definitely believed that she was qualified and was planning to run for office when Kingsley finally decided to step down. The reason she didn't run before that is that she would be insane to try and run against Kingsley, who was incredibly popular among the public.

Hermione had just gotten settled in her office when Harry and Ron stepped in.

"I can't believe you! My only free weekend this month and you had to schedule me to cover for Barnes! Couldn't you have picked anyone else?" Ron said all of this very loudly and quite angrily.

"There was no one else!" Harry replied. "I had to convice Mills that Hermione was good enough to do it in the first place."

"Wait, cover for Barnes? What are you two talking about?" Hermione asked quietly. She had found that if she talked quieter when Harry and Ron were arguing she could often calm them down.

"Harry volunteered as to act as security for Kinglsey's speech this weekend!" Ron said. "It was my only free time this month!"

"So I'd heard" Hermione added dryly. She turned to Harry, "Us? You volunteered me too?"

"Well," Harry started "I needed another and I knew you were capable so yeah I volunteered you."

"But why couldn't Mills have done it himself?" Hermione asked. "It is his department after all."

"'Cuz he's a fat cow whose never done anything"

Harry and Hermione both turned to Ron as if to say "And you have?"

"Anyway" Harry said annoyed. "We have to be here at Eight O'clock sharp on Saturday. I'll see you two then."

Harry then turned and left for home.

* * *

If this speech would have happened ten years ago, there would have been a protest or a Death Eater attack. However, this time, this year, there was nothing. Not even a blip on the radar and for the first time in a longtime, Harry felt at peace.

* * *

**Please review if you read. This is my first FanFic so I would like to know what I'm doing wrong.**


	3. The Headmaster of Hogwarts

New Appointment

Xavier and Richmond Mitchell were brothers. Twins, to be exact. They were each very accomplished wizards in their own regards. And while they may have been twins, they really couldn't have been any different. During their time at Hogwarts, Xavier got top marks in their class in Defense Against the Dark Arts and Charms, where his brother recieved the best scores in Potions and Transfiguration. Also, the Sorting Hat placed Xavier in Ravenclaw and Richmond in Slytherin. Richmond was outraged at the fact that he would be placed in the same house that Lord Voldemort had been placed in. However, over their time at school, each one showed that they truly belonged to their house.

Xavier was the more reserved of the two. He had a very small group of friends who were intensley devoted to each other. They spent almost every moment of the day together and didn't do much with anyone else. Xavier was quietly the best wizard in their class. He never got back marks and when it came to taking his O., he got an Outstanding in DADA and Charms and an Exceeds Expectations in everything else. Anyone knew him knew he was humble to the max. Although he was a very talented wizard, he never boasted about or showboated with his power. He made sure that he only used his ability for his schoolwork. When he graduated from Hogwarts, he went into the Auror Office, which everyone thought was odd because he never seemed to be one who would want a job like that.

Richmond, or Rich, was quite the opposite. While he was just as good a wizard as his brother, he was a different person. He got exceptional grades in Potions and Transfiguration, but rather average grades in everything else. He spent at least one night a week in detention for something that he had done to another student. He was even suspended by the school in his sixth year for stunning a student and blasting another out of a window. He was ruthless and cared very little for others. He had a group of people who followed him around who most would call "friends." He stated more than once that he had no real use for friends. Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts during their time at school, once said that it was scary how much Richmond reminded him of Tom Riddle during his time at school.

Xavier was also very good friends with some people from other Houses. One of his best friends was Alicia Spinnet, who was in his class in Gryffindor. He was also on speaking terms with fellow classmates Fred and George Weasley, even attending Fred's funeral following the Battle of Hogwarts, which he participated in. His brother, on the other hand, about six weeks into his first year stopped associating with people from other houses, including his brother. He hated Fred and George and once challenged them both to a duel, which he promptly won. After his years in school, he also joined the Auror Office, although he was not as celebrated as his brother.

After three years in the Department, they were finally paired up on a mission to stop a few of the remaining Death Eaters out there. The mission was compromised due to Rich's refusal to listen to his brother's advice. He charged into a room full of old Death Eaters and was nearly killed when they started a small battle. Luckily, Xavier was able to grab his brother and Apparate back to the Ministry. Rich was fired from the Auror Office for the incident.

Following that, he became the Transfiguration Professor at Hogwarts. He disliked the job and often took it out on his students. Regardless, he was known throughout the castle as one of the best professors there.

After that same incident, Xavier was promoted above his own superior to become the Assistant to the Minister of Magic. However, Kingsley treated him like an equal, often asking his opinion on international matters. It was from Kingsley that Xavier was suggested to become the next Headmaster of Hogwarts.

* * *

Since the battle of Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall had been the Headmistress. However, unlike Dumbledore before her, her age had caught up with her. A recent visit to St. Mungro's had told her that if she got rid of some of the stress in her life, she may be able to live for five or six more years. It was with this information that she began to look for a replacement for herself.

She immediately thought of her favorite students over the recent years. She had come to the decision that the new Headmaster should be someone young who could better relate to the students and whom would be around for awhile. Also, the student should have been respected by his or her fellow classmates during their time at school. Finally, the new Headmaster should be able to defend the school, both verbally and physically, if neccassary. It was with these guidelines that she created this small list:

Harry Potter  
Hermione Granger  
Xavier Mitchell  
Richmond Mitchell  
George Weasley

She looked at the list. Surely, one of these fine young people would accept the position. She first contacted Harry. Harry briefly stated that at the current time, he did not feel that education was what he was meant for. He also mentioned that she should tell the next Headmaster to wait ten years and then ask him about the DADA position.

Next, on the list was Hermione Granger. When contacted, she also declined. She said that while she was good at school, she was not properly equipped to being a teacher.

The next day, she contacted Xavier Mitchell. He told her that if she could find no one else, he would accept the position.

Rich also said the same thing when asked.

George Weasley just laughed at the thought of him becoming Headmaster. Minerva took that as a no.

She contacted both Xavier and Rich and told them to meet her in her office in a week.

* * *

A week later, Xavier and Rich were seated in the office of Headmistress Minerva McGonagall. While they looked alike with their short brown hair and equally pale skin, they were still nothing alike. They hadn't talked more than a few sentences to each other since the incident with the Death Eaters and hadn't seen each other in almost a year. The tension in the room was thick and McGonagall seemed to sense it.

"I would like to thank you both for coming"

"Not a problem, Professor," Xavier chimed in.

"Sure," Rich added dully.

"Well, down to it." Minerva started. "You both have realized that you are both in the running to become the next Headmaster of the school. Since it is currently January, you would not take over until the End of the Year Feast, where you would be introduced to the school. Now, I have looked at both of your resumes and reflected on what I remember from the two of you in school. I must be perfectly honest. Between the choice of you, the decision was quite easy. Richmond, I hired you on because I knew you to be a capable professor. You have done an excellent job of proving that to me. However, you have not proven yourself to be a capable _person_. Almost once a week, I recieve an owl from an upset parent whose child believes you to be too harsh. Again to be perfectly honest, you were never in the running once your brother agreed. Not only is he just a good a wizard, if not better, he is a good person. Xavier, if you would like the job, it is yours."

The silence in the room was awful. Xavier knew that he didn't think his brother was capable of holding this job but he didn't think that McGonagall would be so frank in her assessment of the two of them. Xavier looked at his current job. He would never become head of the Auror Department. Harry Potter was set to take over for Mills. Minister of Magic was probably not going to happen either. Both Hermione Granger and Percy Weasley had a very good public following and were almost in a deadlock in the general public. If he was perfectly honest with himself, he knew this was the only way he was going to continue to go up in the world.

"Sure, I will take the job" Xavier stated.

"WHAT!!?"

Xavier turned to see his brother's face turn a bright red color. His eyes had a distinct flair to them, almost a crimson color hidden underneath the natural blue. He stood and paced the room for a couple seconds before turning a blasting the chair he had just been sitting on to thousands of tiny pieces. Then, he turned back to Xavier and unloaded.

"HOW DARE YOU TAKE THIS JOB AFTER WHAT THIS WOMAN HAS SAID ABOUT ME? YOU CHOOSE HER AND THIS PATHETIC SCHOOL OVER ME? FIRST, YOU GET ME FIRED FROM THE AUROR OFFICE, SO I HAVE TO COME WORK _HERE_. THEN, YOU COME IN AND TAKE A JOB THAT IMMEDIATELY OUTRANKS ME!! YOU'VE NEVER EVEN TAUGHT BEFORE! WHAT MAKES YOU THINK THAT YOU COULD RUN A SCHOOL!! YOU ARE A FOOL! IF YOU TAKE THIS JOB, I SUBMIT MY RESIGNATION. I WILL NOT BE OUTDONE BY YOU AGAIN! THEY DON'T EVEN TEACH GOOD MAGIC HERE! THEY ARE TOO WEAK TO REALIZE THE POWER HIDDEN IN THE DARKS ARTS! I WILL BE BACK AND WHEN I AM, YOU WILL REGRET CROSSING ME!!!"

And with that he walked across the room and blasted the door open and disappeared from view. Xavier sat in shock for a couple minutes before turning to Minerva and saying:

"I still want the job."

He then got up and followed his brother.

* * *

Xavier was rarely angry. Perturbed, sure. Irritated, often. Annoyed, frequently with the department he worked in. But, he was very rarely angry. He was _enraged_ right now. What was his brother thinking? Had he been dabbling in the Dark Arts? If so, for how long? How deep in was he? Thousands of questions darted into his head. But, he was really concerned with them right now. He wanted to find Rich. After running down a couple set of stairs, he found his brother staring out over the lake. He approached his brother, who abruptly turned and pointed his wand at Xavier's forehead.

"Took you long enough," he said.

"Hey, whatever is wrong, just talk to me about it. I want this job. You above all people should realize what it would mean to me. I went into the Auror Office because it was a way to put my abilities to use. But I never really enjoyed it. Not as much as you did"

"Well, I did enjoy it. Until you got me fired." he fired back. He looked like he was trying to burn a hole through Xavier's head.

"You rushed into a room with over 10 Death Eaters in it! I don't care how good you are, those are numbers you don't want!" Xavier replied. How had he missed it? His brother had been this angry this whole time. That was a little over three years ago.

"I could have taken them on and you know it!"

"No, you couldn't have! You aren't Dumbledore!"

Rich stopped at this. The hate in his eyes intensified to a new level.

"Well, of course not. Dumbledore was weak. He didn't dare try anything out of the ordinary. Exploring magic is part of what makes a wizard better. That's why we have this power. That's why we're better than Muggles!"

It was at this that he knew his brother was lost. Neither one of their parents had been wizards. Their dad was a farmer and their mother was an accountant. To hear his brother say that about Muggles, when his own parents were Muggles, was the worst feeling ever. But, then as he began thinking to himself, something awful occured to him. His parents had both died under mysterious circumstances about six months ago. His brother hadn't come to the funeral. He hadn't even gotten in contact with anyone in his family. The horror occurred to him as he saw a terrible look in his brother's eyes.

"Did you--did you--did you do it? D-did you kill them?" Xavier stuttered. Never before had he been afraid of his brother, not until now. But, he knew fear would get him nothing. He pulled out his wand and aimed it at his brother.

"_Stupefy!" _he cried.

"_Protego!" _Rich returned.

And so it began. The two stood face to face and sent charms and curses and each other. It took almost twenty minutes for someone to notice them outside. Soon, the entire population of Hogwarts had spewed out onto the lawn. Xavier had cast a Bubble Charm around him and his brother so they wouldn't hurt anyone. Back and forth they went for nearly an hour. Neither gaining any advantage, they launched their spells at each other. Suddenly, Xavier changed his tactics. He stopped attacking and just blocked everything Rich sent at him. Frustration arose in Rich as nothing he did seemed to affect his brother. Finally, he did what no one thought him capable of.

_"Avada Kedavra!"_

Xavier dove out of the way and turned to fire but Rich was too quick.

_"Crucio!"_

Oh, the pain! He hated his brother. But, something else happened. The pain disappeared as quickly as it had happened. Rich lacked the power to harm his brother. While he now regarded his own parents as his enemy, he couldn't see his brother that way. Rich looked at Xavier.

"Join me. That's the only way you'll get out of this alive. I may not kill you but someone will. Something big is coming. If you don't side with me, you won't survive. You know where to find me."

With that, he turned and ran from the school.

Xavier got up, dusted himself off, and turned to Professor McGonagall who had just come out of the school.

"Get me Harry Potter."

* * *

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	4. The Other Brother

The Other Brother

Rich was mad. In fact, he could never remember a time where he had been more angry, which was quite a feat. He had long since accepted the fact that most people liked his brother better than he. However, he did believe that he was a better wizard than Xavier. He had just proved it! In a few short seconds, he had disarmed his brother and beaten him. He had also tried to kill him. This beat down on Rich more than anything he had ever done. He had hurt people and abused people, but even though he and Xavier didn't get along, they had never hurt each other. At least not like that. He had tortured his brother.

He had tortured his brother.

Over and over, the scene replayed in his head. Over and over, he thought about what he had done. More than once, he had gotten up to go apologize to his brother, only to sit back down in shame. But what worried him more than anything else is what he thought about it. After about an hour of going over that scene in his head, he realized he was only sorry because it was his brother. Had it been some odd stranger who had bothered him or an old enemy who had come to fight him again, what would he have done? He looked deep inside and realized he would have done the same thing he did to Xavier. Only, he wouldn't have felt sorry for it. He wouldn't have felt shameful or anything of the like. He would have felt justified. But, these thoughts led him to his darkest hour. The hour he had killed his parents.

During the later years of his schooling at Hogwarts, he had started differentiating with his family quite often. Xavier was a main component in Hermione Granger's push to change laws in favor of Muggle-born Wizards. Rich didn't hate Muggle-born Wizards. He couldn't, because he considered himself to be one. Both of his parents had been Squibs, people born from wizarding families with no magical ability. Rich and Xavier's grandparents had each better accomplished witches and wizards. Unfortunately, their two oldest children didn't get that gift. Xavier and Rich had aunts and uncles with exceptional magical ability. But neither of their parents could so much as get sparks to shoot out of a wand. Xavier thought that it was interesting to have parents who couldn't do magic. He learned much about the Muggle world, which was why he became so interested in the Pro-Muggle-born laws. Rich, however, resented it. He rarely talked about, or to, his parents. He wouldn't never admit it, but he hated them for what they were.

Eventually, this hate began to spread inside him. It grew to other Squibs to Muggles then finally to Muggle-born wizards. It was at this point that he began to stop associating with the rest of his family. He stop coming home for holidays and after he left school, he rarely came to visit.

But then, about a year ago, he snapped. Still thinking back to this day, it hurt him. He hadn't wanted to hurt them but he did. Since he left, his parents had completely left the wizarding world to live in the Muggle world.

* * *

_One Year Earlier_

For some reason, Rich decided that he was going to visit his family. He never knew exactly why but unless he was imagining it, he had been hearing a small voice tell him in the back of his to go. So, obviously his parents were very surprised to see their lost son on their front porch. And for a while, things were very nice. But, then that voice came back and this time it was telling him a whole other story. As his parents talked and talked and talked about everything from gas prices to yard work to other mundane Muggle things, he snapped. He turned to his father who had been washing dishes and said:

"_Confringo!"_

What was left of his body flew out the window. The rest of him had disintegrated right there in the kitchen. He then turned to his mother. She was completely silent. Tears streamed down her face as she looked from the broken window to her son.

"So, this is the ways things are?" she asked quietly.

"Why couldn't you have just been normal? Why couldn't you have been able to defend yourself from this? You say that you have no magical ability. I don't believe you. I just think you are so weak to use it. Too pathetic. And this is the price you pay for that. You get to die."

He had said this all very calmly, without once raising his voices. But as he said, he notice something change about his mother. The tears remained on her face but not in her eyes. Now, her eyes were cold and sharp and what she said next hurt him more than anything.

"Your brother will beat you."

It was simple and to the point. It was awful. He now knew that no matter what he would do, no one would respect him for the wizard he was. Rich knew that his brother had no chance against him. However, he had finally come to the realization that he was the only one who believed it.

"Is that so?" he said in a calm, smooth voice. "Well, if that's so let him come and save you. Because before, I would have killed you simple and slow. Much quieter than Dad's. But now, I think I will have to change that. I think that I want to make him hear you scream!"

_"Sectumsempra!" _

He had heard about this Dark curse before, but had never used it and now he knew why. His mother doubled over the second he uttered the curse, covered in blood. Three slashes appeared across her mid-section, each almost three inches deep. Not deep enough to kill instantly, just enough to hurt like hell. Normally, Rich would have felt awful for what he had done. But this was normal and he wasn't even really Rich anymore. He was someone different, more powerful.

"Had enough, Mother?" he asked with a crazed look in his eyes. "No? Well then how about this?"

_"Crucio!"_

He had done it. She lay on the floor, writhing in pain. Yet, she uttered no sound as if not to give in to her son's sick pleasures. He continued for two or three minutes. Eventually, he released her, a huge smile on his face.

She remained on the floor. She was sweating profusely and took incredibly deep breaths, as if she was trying to suck all the hair out of the world.

Rich stood over her. He put a Silencing Charm on the house. He knew this would take awhile. He wanted this to be the landmark. He wanted everyone to know how much better than his brother he was. And for that, he would need sometime.

Some hours later, Rich finally left the house. Inside nothing was left together, as though someone had been thrown around the house. Left suspended on the ceiling was what used to be a woman's body. It was burned, bruised, shocked, and stabbed. She had a large knife imbedded in her stomach. There were scars that had not been there before. They were a result of use of various spells that had caused her damage. Her son would then heal her, so that he could do it again. Finally, just before her death, she cried out. Then, after hours of both physical and psychological torture, he killed her.

* * *

Thinking about that night still hurt. It hurt him to know what awful things he had done. Awful things to those he was supposed to love. There was only one problem with this: he didn't love them. He liked them enough, sure. But, he didn't care for them deep down the way he knew he should. Just like what he did to his brother, he felt bad. But, unlike with Xavier, where he had felt bad because it was his brother, this time he felt bad because he had killed someone, not because it was his mother.

Rich knew that he was different. But, he also knew that he was better. His mother's last words haunted him. Even in the face of death and under the pain that he had caused her, she believed that Xavier was better. This made him angry. But, it had also changed him. He knew that if he ever wanted to get the respect that he deserved, the respect that his brother had stolen from him, that he would have to earn it. He would have to _make_ them respect him.

All of this reminded him of his days at school. During his school years, he was respected. So was Xavier, but it was different. Xavier was noticed for being a good student and a good friend. People trusted him and believed that he would always be there to help them. He was a Head Boy and a top student.

Rich knew that he could have been that kid. The one that all the teachers loved, that all students wanted to like. The only thing was that he didn't find that life to be any fun. So, Rich was the complete opposite. He was respected by most because of his incredible magical ability. Almost everyone in the school knew of Rich Mitchell and his abilities. Even his teachers were astounded with how in tune with his abilities he was. But, he wasn't his brother. He didn't use his abilities to become a perfect person. He used them to obtain power. Because he was in Slytherin House, his friends were of a more shady disposition. By the time his seventh year came about, he had been suspended from school twice and had a record 118 detentions.

Everyone who knew him knew that he believed himself to be a superior wizard to everyone in the school, including his brother. Only once, he had gotten the chance to prove it. While he had disliked his brother before, he remembered the day of the duel as the day he began hating his brother.

* * *

It had happened at the end of their seventh year. The two brothers had both passed their N.E. with flying colors and were prepared to join the Auror Department of the Ministry of Magic. For the last few days of term, the seventh years were given free reign over the castle. No longer were the bound by the normal curfew. So, of course, this meant that some of the seventh years every year decided to cause some trouble.

Rich's group of friends, nicknamed the "Nightwalkers", decided one night that they were going to vandalize Professor McGonagall's office. So, they left the Slytherin Common Room and made their way up from the dungeons to the office of the least favorite teacher. Along the way, they met Argus Filch, caretaker of the castle, who immdiately rempremanded them for being out of their Common Room at night. While the others of Rich's group decided to ignore the caretaker and continue walking, Rich had other ideas.

He turned to the caretaker. Carefully, he pulled out his wand and pointed it at Filch's chest.

"Freeze!" he yelled.

At this, Filch cowered in fear. The group burst into laughter, with Nix, Rich's best friend, nearly falling down the stairs with laughter.

"You really are pathetic. I can't believe I used to be afraid of you. This should really make you freeze._ Immobulus!"_

Filch froze in place. Rich turned and said something into Nix's ear. The smile on Nix's face grew to the point where it nearly touched his ears. When Rich was done talking, Nix went and picked up Filch and set him near the closest window.

"Now this," Rich said quietly, "will make you stop picking on us poor students."

"_Expelliarmus!"_

Normally, this spell would only disarm an opponent. Unfortunately for Filch, Rich was much more powerful than a normal wizard and he had no wand. The spell his him square in the chest and shot him out the window. Rich and Nix laughed hysterically, while the other looked very uncomfortable. Then, Rich motioned for the other boys to continue on their way.

Professor McGonagall's office was attached to the back of her classroom. The Nightwalkers were prepared for her office to be under such protection that it would be quite difficult for them to enter. If this was the case, then they would just have to trash her classroom. They approached the classroom and quietly opened the door. They looked inside. It appeared to be quite empty. Following this, the boys made their way to the office. Just as they reached the door, a voice spoke from the shadows.

"I would do that if I were you"

Confused the boys looked around to see someone sitting at the desk of the Professor.

"Who's there!?"

"Oh come on, you can't tell me you don't know who I am."

Rich stood in silence. The voice seemed familiar, but he just couldn't place it. He thought and thought until all of the sudden, it hit him.

"Xavier?"

"Wow, took you long enough."

"What are you doing out so late?"

"I am making sure you don't trash McGonagall's office."

"How did you hear about this?"

"I heard about it because you have a big mouth. You told other people and other people told me."

"Well, I guess I do. So, Mr. Head Boy, what are you going to do? Tell Mommy?"

At this, Xavier stood up. As Rich looked at him, he realized his had his wand in his hand. With a small smirk, he simply said:

"No, I'm going to stop you."

Then, quicker than anyone else in the room could understand, Xavier flashed his wand. Without even saying a word, multiple spell and hexs flew out of his wand. Nix was blown out of window, another was hit with a spell that made him float to the ceiling. Still another had his arms and legs pinned together as he fell to the floor. The last one of Rich's group was hit with a Disarming Spell and his wand was in Xavier's hand.

"Well, I expected better for the followers of _the best wizard in the school."_

It was obvious to Rich that he was outmatched. Xavier had mastered non-verbal spellwork to the point that the spell was almost out of the wand before he thought the word. Plus, Rich knew that Xavier knew a complete array of different curses and counter-curses. Deciding that fighting back was a bad idea, Rich took another course of action.

"Imagine what Professor Dumbledore will say when he finds out that his Head Boy attacked four young men. I imagine he will be pretty disappointed."

Xavier laughed out loud.

"Oh, Dumbledore will never hear about this. I know you, Rich. I know that your ego is enormous. You declared yourself the best wizard in the school, for crying out loud. But, what I also know. Is that even though you would love to see me get in trouble, you couldn't take the shame. You couldn't take it that the whole school knew that I had beaten all of your cronies and you in a single quick flick of the wand. So, I know this. You won't tell anyone. Ever. Because if you do, I will tell everyone what you are thinking. I will tell everyone that you know that you are beaten and you know that you will always be beaten."

Xavier smiled at his brother and left the room. Rich couldn't move. He couldn't tell how long he had been standing there, until finally he came to his senses. He fixed everything that had been broken during Xavier's attack, removed the spells on his friends, and even retrieved Filch from outside.

True to his word, Rich said nothing about Xavier's attack. No one knew about the defeat of the school's best wizard. No one except Rich. Rich decided that night that never again would he be defeated. If it came down to it, to avoid defeat, he would kill his brother.

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* * *


	5. The Last Orders of the Minister

The Last Orders of the Minister

It was December. School was getting closer and closer to Christmas break and if Xavier was completely honest with himself, he would definitely be ready for the break. While he knew that taking the position of Headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry would be taxing, he had no idea how difficult it would really be. Each morning, he got up to a slew of Owls sitting outside his window. They were from upset parents, potential hires, and people asking for advice. He did his best answer all of these, but to be truthful, he definitely didn't answer all of them. Following that, he made his way down to the Great Hall for breakfast, which was the least stressful time of day. From there, he would make rounds around the school. He would watch classes to make sure that all of his teachers were being productive. While not a educator himself, he knew from his days at school what worked and what didn't. He would do this for the rest of the day. After dinner, he would make his way back up to his study where he would work on various menial tasks until he went to bed.

This morning, he would do none of that. The previous evening, he had recieved a letter from the Ministry of Magic, simply stating "Please attend a meeting outside the office of the Minister of Magic's office at 8:00 AM tomorrow."

Xavier had talked to the Minister a few time in his life. Obviously, a few of those meetings during his time at the Minister. Since then, he had met with the Minister for dinner just once, to discuss a trip the Minister had planned on taking to the United States. So, while not completely unexpected, something about this meeting with the Minister unnerved him. Especially since he had not been summoned to the Ministry itself since his departure last June. Part of him was quietly very excited to return to the Ministry. He had quite a few friends there, many of whom he had been neglecting due to his busy schedule at Hogwarts.

Another thing about this meeting that bothered him was its location. He was to meet outside of the Minister's Office. Why was that? The only thing that was in the area outside Kingsley's office was a table with five places at it. Each of these places had a small hole in the table in front of it. Its purpose was lost to most people and only Kingsley himself said he knew what it was for, although he would tell no one.

So, the following morning, Xavier woke up to the typical tussle of Owls hanging outside of his window. In his usual morning fog, he turned to one and opened it, unaware of the red envelope until it was too late. Normally, he would have feared Howlers. This one, however, was quite laughable. He had no idea has to who the sender was and whom the voice was referring to. This was simply because he could understand very little of what the person was saying. What he could make out made him believe that Herbology Professor Neville Longbottom had given their child a bad mark, which this parent obviously felt was unnecessary. Xavier knew that Neville would never give a student a bad grade unless they had earned it. However, he decided that he would look into it the following morning when he had returned from London.

Deciding that a Howler first thing in his morning had left a foul taste in his mouth about answering mail, he simply took the letters from each owl and stacked them on top of his desk. Tidying both his office and himself up and seeing that everything was in order, he made his way to the fireplace. He preferred taking the Floo Network to Apparating, simply because of the work involved in removing the enchantments on the castle. So, stepping into the fireplace, he threw down the powder and yelled "Ministry of Magic!"

Having traveled by Floo so many times, Xavier felt little of the discomfort normal to Floo travelers. After brushing himself of, he made his way to the Minister's Office. As he walked, memories of his days at the Ministry flooded back to him. But, the one that kept coming back most often was the day he had gotten Rich fired. Normally, he would have felt a pang of guilt for what he had done to his brother. However, after the incident back in April, he had no sympathy for his brother. Rich had been named an enemy of the Ministry and had his face plastered on Wanted posters all of Britain. As of yet, there had been no sighting of Rich and Xavier didn't expect any. Rich was smart enough to know that he probably shouldn't show his face anywhere near London, where most people who still remember his face.

As he had been thinking about this, he hadn't realized that he was nearing the Minister's Office. What he saw there definitely surprised him. Already there were a handful of faces he recognized. One of them was Harry Potter, the un-official Head of the Auror Department. Another was Hermione Granger, a definite Minister of Magic candidate someday. Ronald Weasley, her fiance, was seated between them. He was Potter's right hand man and definitely the best Auror not named Potter. His brother, Percy Weasley, and Assistant to the Minster was seated with them. While Xavier was knew that he was considered one of the best wizards in the country, he was honored to be in such company.

"Good morning" Xavier chimed in as he took the last place at the Pentagonal Table.

A murmur of "Good morning" and "Hullo" came from the other four members of the table.

"Any idea why we're here?" Harry asked Xavier.

"None. I was under the assumption that I was the only one meeting with Kingsley."

"As were all of us."

At this moment, a silence came upon the room. What would Kingsley need with this particular group of people? Potter's group and Xavier were superior wizards to almost everyone in the country and while Percy Weasley was a good enough wizard, he definitely was not what you considered a top flight wizard.

For hours it seemed, they sat in the small room staring at each other or the walls, whichever one they found to be more interesting. Suddenly, a wizard with pure white hair that had been completely slicked back stepped into his room. Even though they hadn't met in years, the sneer on his face was completely recognizable.

"Malfoy!" Harry started. While Xavier hadn't been a real big fan of Malfoy, he had little relation to the man. He had managed to stay away from Rich's group while in school, so while they weren't particularly nice to each other, they weren't awful either. Harry, Ron, and Hermione, on the other hand, had good reason to dislike Draco Malfoy. The rivalry between Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy was legendary. Their encounters were often broadcast throughout the entire school and, depending on the incident, outside the school as well. So, it was with no love lost between them, that they greeted Draco Malfoy again.

"Yes, Potter. My name is Draco Malfoy and I'm glad you remember it. If you would take your seats, please." Harry, who had stood when Malfoy had entered, calmly took his seat.

"Thank you, Potter. Now, all of you know my name and I know yours so I will skip all the introductory crap. This is the single most important meeting the Ministry has ever held. That is because this is the first time this meeting has occurred. Do you know what this table in front of you does?"

The silence in the room confirmed Malfoy's assumptions.

"That is actually a good thing. It means that Shacklebolt never told anyone about it. While it has no name, it does have a very important function. Please place your wand above the hole in front of you."

Each of the five did as they were told. When they did, their wand was pulled down into the hole. As it was, a bright light shone from the hole. When the light disappeared, the name of each of the wandholders appeared in wispy writing in front of them. Then, their wands were lifted back out of the hole and hovered in front of them.

"Good," Malfoy started up again. "That means that their aren't any fakers in you bunch. Now, to the point of this meeting, as all of you know Kingsley was on a trip to the United States?"

Nods around the table seemed to satisfy Malfoy. He continued.

"Good. In the United States, there is growing unrest. Apparently, some of the former Death Eater escaped over the United States to avoid Azkaban. We didn't pursue them, because we thought that they would go and live a quiet life there. Unfortunately, we were wrong. There is a large group of Death Eaters over there now. Rightly, we were to blame for this. We could have gone over and brought them back to Azkaban. However, that decision is passed us. So, in response, to the large group of Death Eaters, there is an incredibly large number of people, nicknamed "The Walkers of the Light", that hate the Death Eaters. They are near a civil war over there. So, Kingsley went over to help the American Minister of Magic try and control things. But, understand this, both sides hate Kingsley. The Death Eaters see him as a Muggle-lover and the Walkers see him as the source of their problems."

Malfoy paused. Everyone at the table had an idea of what he was going to say next, although each of them hoped they were wrong.

"Kingsley Shacklebolt is dead."

Complete and utter silence. No one in the room said a word. Tears were shed. Shoulders were shared. Eventually, when order was restored, Harry simply asked: "How?"

"Kingsley and the American Minster, a man named Jon Cooper, were leaving the Ministry. They were heading back to the hotel where Kingsley had been staying. Kingsley's guard was always a more secretive guard. They hid in alleyways and driveways and such along the route that they would walk back to the hotel. Apparently, there was a leak in the security detail. Both the Death Eaters and the Walkers showed up. Initially, they fought each other, but when they saw Kingsley was there, they began to attack them. The Ministers' Guards both showed up and tried to defend them, but there were too many. So, Kingsley told the American Guard to get Cooper back inside, while he had his guard held them off. Apparently, Kingsley took out a good number of them. But, the numbers were against them. Eventually, one of the Walkers got him with a Killing Curse right under the chin."

Again, silence.

"We got word last night about five minutes before we sent out your owls. You see there is a fail-safe that occurs if a Minister is killed. A Minister of Magic is required upon taking office to give a list of order to give upon their death. It's called "The Last Order of the Minister." Kingsley's was unique. He requested that you be called here and then he would give his orders to the six of us. So, allow me to bring him out again."

He turned to the door of the Minister's Office and said aloud: "You are dead, sir."

Instantly, a shadow began to emerge from the door. It wandered about the room for a bit. Eventually, it almost materialized into the form of Kingsley Shacklebolt. It was made out a almost liquidy-fog material. A smile broke out on the face of Kingsley Shackletbolt.

"So I am, Malfoy! I would like to thank you all for coming to the "Last Orders of the Minister." They are as follows. Harry Potter shall be made the new Head of the Auror Department. Joseph Mills was a pain in my ass for as long as I can remember. He will be transferred to the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes. Ronald Weasley will be named the Assistant to the Head of the Auror Department. Xavier Mitchell, I have no assignment for you. However, I do implore you to remember that your brother is not as good as you think he is. Although you are his brother, so do what you wish. Percy Wesley will be named the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."

Everyone appeared throughly shocked. Hermione Granger had been sacked! As if Kingsley had sensed the mood in the room, he addressed her.

"Well, Miss Granger, I seem to have left you out of a job. Well, I can't see how I could have done that. I am getting quite senile in my old age. Or I should say I was. Get it. I'm dead now. It was a joke.......oh nevermind. Well, Miss Granger, I do believe that I have a job for you. I award you the position of Minister of Magic. I believe you will do quite well in that position. Now, finally, as I have no family of my own, I have left my belongings to the Ministry and to Hogwarts. Some of it, you may wish to keep for yourself. I ask that you do not do that. The Ministry and the school will need their defense in no time I am sure. Well, off to enjoy the afterlife, I am sure I will see you all again. Have a nice day."

And with a small light, Kingsley Shacklebolt, former Minister of Magic, was gone.


	6. The Mysterious Assailant

Attacks

News travels quickly. Especially when it pertains to the death of a Minister of Magic. But, the death of a Minister of Magic was nothing compared to the first ever Muggle-born Minister of Magic. Hermione Granger had recovered from the shock of the Last Orders and had immediately gone to work. She issued the decrees that Kingsley had asked and continued her work on her new Muggle-Born Protection Laws, when Joseph Mills entered her office.

"The Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes!"

"Yes, Mr. Mills. I have transferred you to the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes. I believe that Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley will do quite well without you, and I feel that your new department will benefit from you experience."

"Granger! I will not tolerate this. Kingsley Shacklebolt appointed me to that post personally. So, ten minutes after his death, I find out that his replacement has transferred me. Do you think you know better than Kingsley, you little Mudbl--"

However, before he could finish, he was flying backwards towards the back wall of the Minister's office. As he made impact, all he could see was Hermione Granger with her wand pointed at him. The look in her eyes would peel paint off a wall and Joseph Mills knew he was in trouble. She put her wand away and sat back at her desk. Joseph took this opportunity to leave.

"You may leave," Hermione said as he made his way to the door.

"I was planning on it."

"Please clear out your office."

Joseph turned and looked at Hermione in surprise.

"What?"

"Please clear out your office. I refuse to be spoken to like that and I will no longer need your services."

"Fine, but if you continue to treat people like this, you will dearly pay for it."

"Goodbye, Joseph."

* * *

The next few weeks were the most hectic at the Ministry in a long time. In fact, multiple Ministry workers stated that they hadn't been that busy since the Second Wizarding War and the Rise of Lord Voldemort. There were quite a few factors which made things so busy

First, Hermione had been having daily meetings with various Department Heads. She was trying to coordinate her efforts with those of her Department Heads so that way she wouldn't have to do all their work for them.

Next, the Quidditch World Cup was coming up in France and the French Ministry was requesting help from Hermione with set-up and security.

Also, a memorial service for Kingsley Shacklebolt was being planned for the following weekend and was going to be a very difficult event to plan. Not just because of the service itself, but also because of the massive security problem it could cause. Thousands of witches and wizards would flood London for the memorial, creating a very real problem.

But, most of all, something very strange was going on. In the last three weeks, six different families had been attacked by an unidentified assailant. Each family had been at home, when someone burst through one of the exterior doors. The attacker then entered the main living area and began his assault. What was strange about these attacks was how he did it. Anyone in the house that was a Muggle-Born or a Half-Blood was killed. However, anyone who was pure blood was tortured to the point of insanity. St. Mungo's had eight new patients in the Insanity Ward. Harry and Ron had put every Auror on the case and had each looked into it personally. Unfortunately, no leads had been formed. So, Hermione had called a meeting of all the best wizards in Britain. She decided to call them "The New Order."

She took her seat at the head of one of the conference room tables. Slowly, people started to show up. Eventually, all twelve of the other seats at the table were filled. Hermione stood.

"Thank you all for coming. As you know, we've been having some trouble getting any information on who has been attacking these families. So, I have organized this group of people to help. Not all of you are Aurors. Some of you are nurses, educators, and Ministry workers. That is why you are so important. Your diversity will be of great help to the purpose of this group. So, I will now take the roll."

"Harry Potter, Head of the Auror Department...Ronald Weasley, Auror...Xavier Mitchell, Headmaster of Hogwarts...Ginny Weasley, Quidditch Correspondant....Draco Malfoy, Assistant to the Minister.....George Weasley, Owner of Weasley Wizarding Wheezes....Cho Chang, Healer at St. Mungo's....Fleur Weasley, Gringotts Associate....Zachary Rhine, Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts....Luna Lovegood, editor of _Quibbler..._Neville Longbottom, Herbology Professor at Hogwarts...Angela Johnson, member of Holyhead Harpies."

When the roll was finished, Hermione slowly made her way to the door. As she closed the door, she turned and with a wave of her wand, all the lights went out. Then, she turned back to the door and waved her wand again. The door glowed a bright blue for a bit and then faded back to normality. Hermione then returned to her place at the end of the table.

"Ok. What I said is not entirely true. We do have one picture of the assailant."

She turned to her briefcase and pulled out twelve folders. She then tossed them into their air where they flew to their respective owners.

"We have no name. And no clear picture of his face. And no idea who he is or where he's from. Actually, we aren't even sure if he is a he. But, we must stop him. In your folders are a list of families with Muggle ties. The list is long. However, if you look at the list before the attacks, the attacker is starting from the top and working his way down. Each one of you has a family highlighted. You are to protect this family at all cost. Don't skip your job. But, use all available free time to defend them. And don't let them know that you are there. That will only frighten them. Once you leave, go to a private place. Look through the file. Study the picture. Take notes. Do _everything_ you can to find him. You are dismissed."

* * *

Xavier took his file and laid it upon his office. Never again, or at least so soon, did he believe that he would be doing Auror's Work again. He wondered about the group the Minister had assembled. He knew that most of them had been members of Dumbledore's Army. He would have joined, but he knew that his brother would then take the opportunity to join the Inquisitorial Squad and the last thing he wanted was another family rivalry.

So, after taking care of a few matters that had come up during his absence, he opened his file, using the password "Albus." There were various sheets of information on the families that had already been attacked and those that were expected to be on the target list. There were pictures of the crime scenes. Surprisingly, they were relatively clean. The attacker must have tortured them simply using the Cruciatus Curse. Finally, there was a picture of who they thought was the attacker. He wore a floor length black robe with a hood that covered most of his face. Xavier looked at the picture and couldn't help but think that he knew him. Deciding that now wasn't the time to worry about it, he closed the file and went to bed.

* * *

Not surprisingly, when he got up in the morning, there was the usually flock of owls waiting outside the window of the Headmaster. Dealing with those in his usual manner, he went about his day like he usually did. The only really exciting part was a duel that he had to break up between two Seventh Years of Slytherin and Gryffindor. Even the teachers were afraid to get in the way of this duel. Xavier rushed to the site and was actually quite surprised. The two were using spells that weren't even taught at the school. He stepped up and place his wand to his own throat: "Snorus."

"STOP THIS AT ONCE!"

Immediately, both students stopped and when they realized who had yelled, their eyes lit up in fear. But for some unknown reason, both of them turned their wands on Xavier. Luckily, Xavier was a true master of nonverbal magic, so he could defend himself without letting them know what he was doing. The only problem was that both of them were launching spells at a torrid pace, so that all he could do was defend. Finally, after a couple minutes, both boys had a brief pause where Xavier was able to wave his wand and release a large wave of blue energy at them (a spell of his own creation). Taking this opportunity, he again waved his wand and conjured two giant cords out of the air, which each went to one of the boys and bound them tightly. He then turned to the other professors.

"Classes go on as normal. I am taking these two to my office with me. Thank you for informing me of this."

He waved his wand and both boys began to float. When he returned them to his office, he sat them in the two chairs in front of his desk, took their wands, and untied them. Then, he place the Leg-Locker curse on each of them so that they couldn't move from their seats. As he sat down behind his desk, both boys saw the look in his eyes and knew there was going to be hell to pay.

"What happened?" Xavier asked.

"Well," started Nathan, the boy from Gryffindor. "I am a Muggle-born. So, according to him, I'm stealing magic. He told my little sister that the Last Death Eater would get her!"

"The Last Death Eater?" Xavier asked.

"Yeah, that guy that's been going around and killing Muggle-Borns. That's what the Daily Prophets been calling him." Nathan said.

"You mean Mudbloods, don't you, _Mudblood?" _said Charles, the smug-looking boy from Slytherin.

At this, Xavier stood. "If you ever say that again, you will be expelled from this school, _permanently." _

Charles looked away from Xavier with a sneer on his face.

"As it is, both of you will have to come back next year. Dueling in the hallways for something like this? Nathan, you couldn't have talked to your Head of House about this? You had to confront him? And you? If I had my way, you would never come back to this school for saying the things you said. Both of you are done for the year. I will contact your parents and they will pick you up tomorrow. Until then, you are to remain in your Common Room." He turned to Nathan. "You may leave."

When Nathan finally left his office and was on his way to the Gryffindor Common Room, he turned to Charles.

"You will have no privileges next year. No Hogsmeade visits. You are off the Quidditch team. You must go home for both Christmas and Easter Holidays." Then, Xavier got nose-to-nose with the young man and looked him straight in the eye. "And if I get word of _any_ use of that term from you _ever_ next year, you're gone. I will snap your wand in half, personally."

With this, Xavier rushed Charles out of his office and sat back down at his desk. He turned and looked at the large stack of mail and decided to work on answering that. Tomorrow night, he would begin protecting his assigned family.

* * *

The next day came and went rather quickly and for that, Xavier was appreciative. He dealt with the two boys' families and although both families were disappointed, they understood the reasoning behind such action. After an already long day, Xavier made his way back to his office, where he would then leave to go protect his family. Between Teddy, Neville, and himself, they had decided to alternated which one goes, so they were not all gone every evening.

Xavier pulled Teddy into his office and told him the incantation to replace the Apparation barrier after he left. He then removed the barrier, turned, and was gone.

He reappeared in downtown London. Knowing that it would be good not to be seen, he place a Disillusionment Charm on himself. As he did so, he walked out of the abandoned alley he had Apparated to and into the apartment building the family lived in. His family should be next on the list, if the attacker continued to follow the list as he had done before. He walked to the end of the hall, where his family lived. There, he conjured a chair and waited. He knew that this would be slow work, but there was really no other way to do it. He knew that the attacker favored a pretty straightforward entrance and in an apartment building, the door is about as straightforward as you get. Seconds turn to minutes and minutes to hours as the night slowly ebbed away. Luckily, Xavier had brought along some of Professor Sellers' Invigoration Draught, to keep him awake.

Suddenly, Xavier heard the stairs on the floors below creaking as someone ascended them. While he may have been an Auror in the past, he still disliked violence although he assumed that in the case of this man, violence may be the only option. The creaking crew closer. Xavier drew his wand and set it quietly across his lap, while his hands gently overtop. He did his best to make no movement whatsoever, as that may alert the attacker to his presence. Time passed slower than ever in Xavier's life until finally, the attacker turned and began making his way up the last set of stairs towards the apartment. The picture of him that they had been given was right. His cloak covered his eyes and he walked slowly, but deliberately up the stairs. Xavier couldn't get a look at the rest of his face and resolved that he would probably see him if he had to defend the family.

After waiting outside the door of the apartment for a few seconds, he quietly place his wand to the doorknob. The lock popped open and he was swiftly inside. He then calmly shut the door and went on his way. Quickly, Xavier got up and removed the Disillusionment Charm he had placed upon himself. He decided that he would much rather have himself be attacked than the family. He made his way to the door and quickly opened it. He then softly slid inside and replaced the door. With the wand at the ready, he made his way in.

The apartment was dark and it was obvious the family had gone to bed hours before. It also bear the unique feel of both a Wizarding and Muggle family. There was a TV in one corner and a Wizarding Wireless in another. But, a picture of the family on one of the shelves told him something about this house he feared most incredibly. In the front of the picture was a small boy, no more than 11, wearing his Hogwarts robes. His sandy blond hair nearly covered his eyes and his hat, his hair. But, there could be no mistaking that boy. This was the home of Nathan, the boy he had sent home just this morning for breaking school rules.

His heart sank when he saw the picture, but he also knew that he must keep moving for the killer would not stop and show such pity. He crept along the dark hallways, looking for the assailant and finding nothing. He saw that each room was that he passed was still locked. What was this man looking for? Xavier had thought him to be an obvious killer. Come, kill, leave. But, the farther he got into this home, the less he believed that.

He came to the last room in the hallway, which also happened to be the only unlocked one. He put his wand to the door and pushed it open, hoping the door was new enough that it would not squeak. Luckily, he was correct and he opened the door without being noticed. But, when he saw what he saw and heard what he heard, he knew that being discovered was the last of his issues.

The room was a grand room, with an enormous bed sprawling below a panoramic window with an excellent view of the city. It was truly obvious that in the Muggle world, this family had money. But the room was not what bothered him. It was what the man in black was doing. He was kneeling next to the bed, next to the woman of the two in the bed. He was mumbling something but he couldn't hear him from this distance. As he crept closer, he could hear:

"I-I-I'm s-so sorry, M-Mom. I d-didn't want-t to hurt, y-you. But-t, y-you were a-a f-f-filthy l-l-l-l-little Muggle! I h-had to g-get rid of you. Just like I h-have to g-get r-rid of these p-p-people."

While this was still hardly understandable in between the sobs, he heard enough to come to a startling conclusion. Xavier _knew_ there was a reason he had recognized that face. He knew it! However, he could have looked at that face for days and not realized it until now. That's because he would have never suspected the face that looked back at him in the mirror.

Quietly, the man in black stood and withdrew his wand. He stood back and shakily pointed his wand at the end of the woman laying in the bed.

"I'm sorry," he said quietely.

"NO, I'm sorry!" Xavier roared in reply. _"Incendio!"_

At this, the lights were flipped on from somewhere and the man's cloak was covered in flames. Quickly, he took it off and threw it to the ground. Then, he stomped on it to put the flames out, completely forgoing his wand. Then, Rich turned and faced his brother. He was sweaty and covered in scars and had a new look in his eyes, but was still Rich. At least on the outside he was. He turned to his brother

"What are you doing!?"

"No, what are you doing? What did this family do to you? Did they hurt you? Did they hurt your pride? WHAT? Why do you feel like you need to harm them?"

"They took our magic! There's no way a Muggle should ever become a wizard!"

"Including us? Because that's what we were"

"I refuse to believe that the people I killed were our parents! Their parents had magic ability, so why did they? Because they were adopted and so must have we."

"We look just like Dad. How else do you think that's possible?"

"I don't know and I don't care. But, if you don't stop what you're doing, you're going to be in a lot of trouble."

"With who? We both know who the better wizard is between the two of us."

"I am not talking about me. Just you wait, you'll see."

"I'm not taking anymore of this. You're under arrest."

"Good Luck with that."

The two then pointed each of their wands at each other. The family took the hint and ran from the room. The look in the eyes of each of the brothers was one of death. They knew that eventually, if this kept up, one of them would kill the other. Maybe they were prepared to do that know? Was the other? Neither knew as they look across the room. Simultaneously, both began their wandwork. Neither of them spoke. Both had so mastered nonverbal spellwork that it wasn't necessary. Flashes of gold and blue and red and of every which color shot across the room. The window was broken open. The bed was destroyed and the brothers were at their best. Each of them, holding nothing back, flourishing in the heat of the battle. But, Xavier knew that he did not want to kill his brother and he also knew that he did not want to give his brother the same opportunity. So, when finally, Rich left a whole for him, he launched a large blue energy blast, a concentrated and more powerful version of the spell he had used just the day before, at his brother. It worked and his brother sailed out of the window.

Ashamed at what he had done but knowing it to be right, he went to the other room to comfort the family. Then, he took them to the Ministry for protection and support. After they had been tended to, he spoke to Hermione Granger and told her of the ID of the assailant. He knew that his brother had picked his side. But what his brother had said had also concerned him. "I am not talking about me. Just you wait, you'll see." What did he mean? And who could be the one of whom he was talking about?


	7. Dueling, Harpies, and the Man in White

Life In General

_The Last Death Eater Identified!  
By Beelzebub Franklin, a Daily Prophet reporter_

_The man known publicly as The Last Death Eater, due to his affinity for crimes that would have linked himself with the followers of He Who Must Not Be Named, has finally been identified. Richmond Mitchell, 29, was identified by Hogwarts Headmaster Xavier Mitchell. Xavier, brother of Richmond, is apart of The New Order, a group formed by new Minister of Magic Hermione Granger. The group is designed to be an elite group of witches and wizards who will help defend Britain from assault by Dark Wizards. While it is assumed to be a New Order of the Phoenix, a group formed by Albus Dumbledore during the height of the Dark Lord's reign of terror, this has not been confirmed._

_Richmond was found inside a Muggle home last night sometime after midnight. Nathan Johnson, a student at Hogwarts who also lives there, was present. It was said that Richmond snuck into the apartment where the family lived in order to attack them. This follows the line of five other attacks that he has been accused of. Xavier was waiting somewhere nearby as unknown protection for the family. Just after Richmond made his way inside, he was followed by his brother, who prevented him from attacking the family. A short duel followed, which ended with Richmond being flung from the apartment by an unknown spell. No body was found and it is assumed that Richmond is still active and dangerous. Xavier and the family were brought in by Head Auror Harry Potter for questioning._

_Richmond Mitchell has a history of actions against Muggles and Muggle-Borns. During his time at Hogwarts, he was suspended twice for attacks on students, both of whom were Muggle-born. Anyone who has any information should send an Owl to the Auror Department at the Ministry of Magic._

Xavier threw the paper aside in disgust. He still couldn't believe it. He hadn't slept all night. He had sat at his desk and tried to convince himself that he hadn't seen his brother getting ready to kill two sleeping Muggles. Or that his brother had been talking to their dead mother, a mother who he had killed. But, he hadn't been able to do it. He knew what he had seen. He had seen his brother ready to attack.

But that wasn't what bothered him the most. Who had found out about The New Order? Xavier was sure that the group was meant to be a clandestine group, one of whom no one knew. Now, word was out on The New Order. So, what would the public say about this? Would there be support for it or would it been seen as the government trying to control things again? Xavier's head hurt just thinking about it.

However, he knew that he couldn't worry about that. That was the job for Granger and the rest of the politicians in London. He had a job here at Hogwarts and it had to be done. Also, for the first time in a long time, Xavier had plans for the evening. With how busy he had been during his first year as Headmaster, he had rarely had time for a personal life. Tonight, he was making an exception. Demelza Robins had invited him to go to a Quidditch match that evening and deciding that he had had very little free time recently, he had agreed. Until then, however, he had work to do. A couple of students had taken to dueling in the hallways recently and he needed a way to stop it.

So, he called a meeting of his teachers to discuss this. He also called Minerva McGonagall back to seek her help. The meeting was to take place just as classes were ending that day so most of the professors had let classes out early to head to Xavier's office. Once everyone was there, Xavier called the meeting to order.

"Thank you, everyone, for being here. I think you are all know why we are here. I have also asked former Headmistress Minerva McGonagall to help with any ideas we may have. As you all know, some students, particularly in Gryffindor and Slytherin Houses, have been dueling in the hallways. The sudden increase in these happens, I feel, be explained by one thing. My brother's attacks of Muggle-born Wizards."

At this, everyone in the room looked around the room, nervously. No one had mentioned to the Headmaster about his brother and all of them had decided against, but now that the subject had been breached, each one of them independently decided it needed to be talked about.

"So, it really was him," asked Neville Longbottom, the Herbology Professor and Head of Gryffindor House.

"I never thought that he could do anything like that. I remember him from school. I was in his class and he was aggressive, but never murderous." chimed in Zachary Rhine, the Defense Against the Dark Arts, Professor and Head of Slytherin House.

"Yes, it appears that my brother was involved in these attacks. Whether this was his first and he was acting with a group or whether he had done them all remains to be seen. However, that is not why we are here. We are here to discuss how to stop the students from attacking each other in the halls. Does anyone have any ideas?"

"Well, I do have one, Headmaster," said Minerva McGonagall.

"By all means, continue, and please call me Xavier, Minerva," Xavier said with a smirk.

"Very well, Xavier. I believe it is simply a matter of not allowing students to be caught in situations where they would feel compelled to attack and/or defend themselves. I know that while I was here, between classes, I remained in my classroom. Only when I heard something in the hallway would I venture to the hallways. Then, that may have worked. Now, I do believe it will. Each professor needs to be stationed outside their classrooms, with their wand at the ready, in case something should come up."

"Thank you, Minerva. But that does not help in all cases. What should we do about situations that occur outside of a teachers realm. Just last week, Jimmy Johnson attacked Marvin Wells on their way to Divination. No classrooms are even in the remote vicinity of the North Tower. Should I ask teachers to escort students to their next class? I feel that is unnecessary. So while I will agree with Minerva that each teacher does need to be on the ready between classes, does anyone have a solution for a situation where a professor cannot be present."

A silence crept over the Headmaster's office as some of the best brains in the Wizarding World worked over this conundrum. Finally, one of them stepped forward.

"May I be permitted to present an idea, Headmaster," spoke the small and timid man known as Isaac Stems, the current Potions Master. He had been hired just weeks before term and appeared in an almost perpetual state of fear.

"Once again, Isaac, I ask you to speak your mind freely and please call me Xavier." stated Xavier, with a wide grin on his face.

"Well, Headmaster, I believe that simply, you, uh, just, uh, oh--I don't know how to say this. You could, possibly, umm, just suspend students from going to class that attack other students." With that, Isaac backed away from Xavier and reclaimed his place among his colleagues.

"Thank you, Isaac. I assure, I am already doing that. The only problem seems to be that it is not preventing students from causing harm to each other."

"Well," started Zachary, "we could require that any students that gets caught dueling each other be suspended from school. But, not just that, the first time they are caught, they are presented in front of the Heads and you, Xavier. There, they must state their cases for why they were involved. If we feel that one of them was simply defending themselves or others, nothing goes into their record. However, if it is discovered that they instigated the attack, it is placed in their permanent record. Following that first incident, any other attacks result in suspension for the rest of that term and they will be reported to the Ministry for their actions. We would obviously encourage the Ministry to take no action at that time. But, finally, if they are caught a third time, they are brought before the school governors to discuss expulsion and we present this information to the Ministry and encourage them to consider legal actions against the offender. That way, we can get rid of any students that may be continually attacking students, but we don't allow students who are protecting themselves or others to be harmed for their actions."

A calm came over the room as the idea sank into each of those present.

"Minerva, what do you think?" Xavier asked.

"I think it works. It is delibrate and allows for students to become repeat offenders before any real action is taken." she replied.

"Well, does anyone have any problems with this system?" he asked. No one moved. "Seeing no hands, I thank you for your time and I shall see you tomorrow. Have a good evening."

As everyone left, Zachary Rhine made his way to Xavier's desk.

"Xavier, if you plan on doing this, could you ask Harry Potter about providing a place for underage wizards to go that isn't Azkaban? I like putting them somewhere, but even without the dementors, I still don't feel like kids should be going to Azkaban."

"Yes, I could ask him tonight. I imagine he will be at the Quidditch match this evening."

The look of surprise on Teddy's face was noticeable. "You are going to the Quidditch match? You know, I remember you from school. You never head much a social life then, did you? And who are you going with? She must be pretty good looking, since if I remember correctly, you weren't a big Quidditch fan. "

"Yes, I had a social life. I just didn't publicize it." Xavier said with a quick smile. "Demelza Robins asked me to go with her to the match this evening. I know how much Harry loves the Chudley Cannons (even though I can't see why with how awful they are) so I imagine he'll be there."

"Demelza Robins, eh? Wasn't she the one that was on Potter's team when they were in school?"

"That's what she said. She joined the year after we left. She is looking to join the Hollyhead Harpies and they play tonight. So, she's going to the game and then she has to meet with Gwenog Jones afterwards." Xavier stated calmly.

"Gwenog Jones? As in like former superstar and manager of the Harpies?" Zachary asked.

"The one and the same. According to Demelza, she actually excited to meet me."

"Who? Gwenog?"

"Yeah, I don't know why though. I'm no superstar." Xavier said humbly.

"Sure, you were only the best Auror since Moody and then you became the Headmaster of Hogwarts following the three most influential Headmasters in Hogwarts history. But, then again, I guess that makes you a nobody when you compare yourself to Harry Potter."

"Shut up," Xavier said grinning from ear to ear. "So what are you doing this weekend?"

"Taking the wife to France to go visit her family." Zachary said, a noticeable drop in his demeanor.

"That bad, huh?" Xavier asked.

"You have no idea!? They have got to be the worst kind of people ever. And I was in Slytherin and I think that."

"Wow, they must be like Voldemort-bad." Xavier said with an evil look on his face, ignoring the shiver from Zachary.

"Please, don't ever say that name in my presence ever again." Zachary said, a look of complete fear in his eyes.

"Why, the guy is dead. Even then, why be afraid? We have Harry Potter." Xavier said, mimicking a scar on his forehead.

"And on that note, I am leaving. Have fun at your match tonight. Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Zachary said as he walked toward the door.

"Oh, that's a very small list isn't it?" Xavier replied as the door closed.

Noticing the time and thinking it to be a bad idea to be late on his first date with Demelza, he lifted the Apparation charm on his office, place a Disillusionment Charm on himself and left for her house.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Appearing outside a small brownstone in Britain, he removed the Disillusionment Charm and made his way to the front door. As he marched the steps, he noticed how nervous he was. He hadn't been on a date in a long time now. In fact, the last time he had been on a date, he had been out of school less than a year. He went with Cho Chang for a couple weeks before they decided that they definitely just didn't work together.

But, Demelza was something different, at least for him. She was almost three years younger than him, but something about her seemed to make that age difference disappear. Also, she didn't treat him like the most famous Auror of his time or the newest Headmaster of Hogwarts, she treated him like Xavier. Also, unlike everyone else, she seemed to be devoid of the fear that he usually inspired. Quite the polar opposite of men like Isaac Stems, she had no problem telling him how things should be and he liked that. He had no idea how this was going to go, but he was excited by the prospect of it all.

When he reached the front door, he lifted his hand and gave the door a gentle knock. After a minute, he tried again. Finally, the door was flung open and he stepped across the threshold and into her home. However, no one appeared to be there.

"Hello?" Xavier said uncertainly.

"One minute!" came a call from somewhere upstairs.

A short minute later, Demelza came bounding down the stairs. She was dressed in all green, including a green robe with a golden talon on the chest.

"Well, a bit boring, are we?" she asked, looking at Xavier in his nearly all-black attire.

"Well, it is what I am comfortable in. Unlike you, I tend to stay away from brighter colors." he said, smiling.

"Oh well. I guess you can't get everything right." she said, returning his smile.

"It is nearly that time, should we get going?" Xavier said as he looked as his watch. He then extended his arm, which she gladly took.

"I guess. But, try not to be too boring. I know you don't like Quidditch." she said.

"It's not that I don't like Quidditch. I just find other things more fun." he said, thinking about dueling Harry Potter for a training session once a long time ago.

"Ok, well I guess that will have to work." she said, planting a small kiss on his cheek.

With a smile a mile wide, he turned and with Demelza at his side, he was gone.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Xavier and Demelza appeared among a large crowd of people moving towards a large stadium at the end of an incredibly large field. Xavier, being of an exceptional mind, immediately decided that they had come to the right place. As Demelza let go of his arm, they made their way towards the stadium. Xavier was amazed by the number of people that were there. But, what was remarkably more amazing, were the number of Wizarding Celebrities he saw along the way. Ronald Weasley, friend of Harry Potter, and assistant to him in the Auror Department was among them and was definitely the most noticed person there.

But, what only a few people saw, Xavier and Demelza included, was the man in black hair pulling a woman with brilliant red hair behind them. They were obviously trying to avoid attention and were remarkably doing a very good job of it. Xavier quickened his pace, along with Demelza, as they made their way to the stadium. Being the Headmaster of Hogwarts or the Head of the Auror Department, as both Harry and Xavier reached the gate at the same time to discover that they both had seats in the Top Box.

Taking their seats next to each other, Xavier turned to Harry.

"Good evening, Mr. Potter," Xavier stated with authority.

"Mr. Potter, who do you think you are, Mitchell? Not even my boss calls me that." Harry said with a start.

"Would that have anything to do with the fact that your boss is one of your best friends?" Xavier said with a knowing look on his face.

"Oh yeah. I didn't think of that." Harry laughed.

"Where is the girl you were dragging in here?" Xavier asked, looking around as he did.

"Oh, Ginny? She's on the team! She plays Seeker for the Harpies. This is probably her last year though. She really wants to do something other than Qudditch." Harry responded.

And so the conversation went on for a couple minutes, until Xavier breeched a new topic.

"At Hogwarts, we're having issues with students dueling in the hallways. So, as a way to stop them, we are inserting a three offense rule. The reason I tell you this is that on the third offense, not only will a student be subject to possible expulsion, they will have their name presented to the Ministry for their actions. However, we feel that while we may think that a form of punishment from the Ministry would be necessary, we don't want underage wizards going to Azkaban. Got any ideas?"

"Well, we could use Numengard Prison? Obviously, we would tone down the things that could go on there. But, it would be a possiblity."

"Could you look into it for me?" Xavier asked.

"Sure." Harry replied.

Just as he said this, both teams were racing onto the field. A blur of green flashed across the field and then began to take laps as a warm-up. The other team was not so coordinated. Orange streaks appeared across the sky until two of them decided to turn a wrong direction and crash into their teammates. A medi-wizard was called to the field and already, one reserve had to step in for a starter. It didn't get any better for the Chudley Cannons. Each time they got the Quaffle, a Bludger came and destroyed their scoring chances.

Demelza was beside herself the entire evening. She couldn't get enough of the fact that she could very well be playing among the Harpies in just a few months. And each time Xavier asked a question, she graciously answered it without hesitation. _He's not even interested in Quidditch. _she thought. _It's me he's interested in._ Finally, after nearly two hours of Harpies scoring, the match was over. A great catch by Ginny Weasley and a final score of 270-10 was enough to prove to Xavier that either, the Harpies were exceptionally good or the Cannons were just as bad.

After the match, Xavier bid farewell to Harry and made his way down to the players area. There to meet them was Gwenog Jones, beater and Captain of the Holyhead Harpies.

"Good game, huh?" she said, shaking Demelza's hand. "And who is this? We usually don't allow anyone other than prospects down here."

"My name is Xavier Mitchell. I am the Headmaster at Hogwarts." Xavier said with a smile. He extended his hand to shake hers.

"Nope, good try though, I haven't heard that one before. Security! Please remove this man." Gwenog yelled.

"I assure you, I am the Headmaster. But if you would like me to prove it, I shall." Xavier said gracefully.

"Ok. Security, Get him!" she screamed in reply.

Without a single word and in one gracefully movement, Xavier pulled out his wand and disarmed all fifteen security men in the area. Each one looked equally frightened and amazed at what Xavier had done.

"Ok. You get in, _Xavier." _she said turning down the tunnel to the team area.

Gwenog led Xavier and Demelza down to a small office. She invited them to sit down across from her desk.

"All right, down to business. We've heard rumors that you are pretty good. Whether that is true remains to be seen. We would like to arrange a tryout with you next week something so we can get you in to team practices sometime before the end of the month. Now, what position have you played in the past?"

"Well," Demelza started nervously. "I played Chaser when I was at Hogwarts and then I played a year just out of school for a team in Germany and I played Seeker, although I don't think I was nearly as good at it as Seeker."

"Again, that's for us to determine. So, does next Thursday work for a tryout?"

Demelza's eyes grew to the size of apples.

"Oh yes, of course! Will I need to provide anything?" she said quickly.

"No, everything will be provided for you. Now, if you don't mind, I must be going. I hope to see you next Thursday and I hope you're as good as people think you are." she said as she walked out of the room.

Xavier and Demelza walked down the tunnel to the outside of the stadium. It was mostly empty now. Except for one man. He stood just outside the team tunnel. He was dressed in an impeccable all white Muggle suit with a fedora. He was smoking a cigarette, which just barely lit up his eyes. However, it was enough for Xavier to see something unusual. The man's eyes were red. But, he didn't have time to think about that. Just as he reached for his wand, the man threw away his cigarette and approached the couple.

"You'll be Xavier Mitchell, then?" he asked in an incredibly smooth voice.

"Yes, I would be and who are you?" he tried to keep the accusation out of his voice. He failed miserably.

"Don't be afraid. My name is Mercer Chaplin. I am a friend of your family. Unfortunately, my work has kept me from being able to talk to you in a long time. But, now that I am back here, I hope that we could become good friends. So, what has become of your mother and father?" he asked.

Something about this man frightened Xavier and that did not sit well with him. He decided to take the easy way out.

"My parents are dead. You can thank my brother for that. Now, if you don't mind, I have to get my beautiful date home." he said and he Apparated back to Demelza's.

But, what Xavier did not see, was the second flash of red at the mention of his brother as he left.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Getting Demelza home was quite easy. Leaving was an entirely different story. Her excitement at her tryout led her to nearly bind Xavier to a chair as she told him everything she knew about the Holyhead Harpies. Xavier admired her greatly. She was incredibly passionate about what she wanted to do and he found that incredibly admirable. All night, she talked to him about what she wanted to do and where she wanted to go. Her ambitions made her great, for Xavier knew that he could never be with anyone who had no ambition.

Eventually, Demelza looked at a clock and noticed that she had gone on for hours and that Xavier had not said a word about it. Apologizing profusely, she escorted him to her front door.

"Well," Xavier said looking anywhere but at Demelza. "I had fun tonight. How 'bout you?"

"It was a great time. We should do it again sometime." she said, with a great smile on her face.

"I was hoping you would say that. Good night."

But, as he turned to leave, he felt a small hand reach out and grab him arm to turn him around. He turned to see Demelza with a curious smile on her face.

"Before you go," she said keeping her smile. "I thought I would give you this."

And she leaned forward and placed her lips on his. It was nothing big or enchanting. But, it was quite good, in Xavier's opinion. After a brief time, they seperated, each smiling greatly.

"That was nice. Good night, Demelza."

"Good night, Xavier."

Each of them turned and went their way. Demelza shut her front door and began to make her way to her bedroom. Xavier turned and placed another Disillusionment Charm on himself as he Apparated back to the castle. And all the while, completely unnoticed by either party, Mercer Chaplin stood quietly, watching in his all white suit, smoking his cigarette. As they went their ways, he dropped the cigarette and he, too, was gone to somewhere unknown.


	8. Ministry and Life

**A/N: This is now going to be an AU story. I discovered that my timeline just would not match the canon timeline. So, while maybe later on, we may see James Potter II and his siblings,but Harry and Ginny are obviously not married yet and while I am not against premarital kids, I just didn't want to have that here. Although now that I think about it, this really was going to turn into an AU story anyway. Oh well, just thought you should know (collapses on the floor).**

Harry arrived at the office a bit earlier than usual that day. His date with Ginny having gone very well the previous night, he was disturbed to have to deal with what he had to that day. For that day was to finally be the last of the Death Eater trials. Antonin Dolohov, having been charged with 15 counts of Wizard Murder, 26 counts of Wizard Torture, 11 counts of Muggle Murder, 78 counts of Muggle Torture, and finally, of supporting Lord Voldemort during his reign over the Ministry, was finally being brought to trial on this day. Facing a little over 7000 years of possible jail time, most men would have begged and pleaded for their life. They would have done everything they could have to get themselves out of prison.

But, Antonin Dolohov was no normal man. He was brought forth by a team of Aurors to the same chair that had held every surviving Death Eater over the past seven years, where he was bound and chained. The Aurors backed away to their stations, wands at the ready in case he tried anything funny. The entire Wizengamot had been assembled there that day. The prosocutors were to be: Hermione Granger, Minister of Magic, Harry Potter, Head of the Aurors and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, and Xavier Mitchell, Headmaster of Hogwarts. As everyone took their seats, most of the Wizengamot members shot dirty looks at Dolohov, who had been staring at the floor every since he was brought in.

"Alright everyone. Please take your seats." Harry started authoritatively. "And so begins the trial of Antonin Dolohov. Mr. Dolohov, do you have someone to speak for you or will you be speaking for yourself?"

For the first time since he was brought in, Dolohov looked up. "Does it matter? I am going to prison either way."

Harry smiled. "Yes, Mr. Dolohov, that is probably true. But, we must observe our trial formalities. Now, Mr. Dolohov, you are the only living member of Lord Voldemort's Inner Circle. During his time of power, you were one of his best enforcers. You attacked innocent Muggles and even small children! Now, give us one good reason, Mr. Dolohov, why we shouldn't just kill you now? I, for one, feel that prison is too good for you!"

This time, Dolohov's eyes lit up as he responded. "You dare speak the name of the Dark Lord? You? A pathetic half-blood? Sure, I attacked and killed Muggles. But, they deserve it. They force us into hiding and they force us to pretend we are something we aren't! We are the dominant! We should be controlling the planet, not hiding behind those pathetic Muggles!" With this last statement, he resumed staring at the floor.

"Did you know?" Harry started. "That not even Gellert Grindelwald was convicted to death. One of the greatest Dark Wizards ever and he was simply sent to his own prison. Apparently, the Wizengamot then was not without a sense of irony. But, you? You stand before this court as the first trial candidate since before the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy to be considered for Death, not prison. This court has never even been presented with a case where a man could be given 1000 years prison and yet, you sit before us with 7000 years of possible prison before us! Why shouldn't we just kill you now and get it over with?"

As Harry spoke, the room, which almost always had a small buzz of chatter among the members of the Wizengamot, had fallen completely and utterly silent. Xavier Mitchell took it upon himself to calm Harry down.

"Now, Harry, we would need a unanimous vote for that and you know that? You also know that we would have to convict him of every single charge brought before us. Now, I know you don't believe that both of those things are going to happen." Xavier said with a frightened smile on his face.

"Why not!? This man was one of the closest followers of the Darkest Wizard _ever!_ His _Dark Lord_ is dead, so why don't we let him join him? I say we vote!" Harry yelled, completely charged with anger.

"First, on the 15 counts of Wizarding Murder, that is, Murder of another Witch or Wizard, how do you vote?" Harry called out to the chamber. The voting system had been changed since the restructuring of the Ministry. No longer was the Wizengamot asked for a yes or no vote. Now, each member shot a Patronus with their vote at Ministry Coat of Arms located behind the Prosecuting Panel. Then, a result would come out in foggy writing. The result would be either: Guilty, Innocent, or Unanimous Guilty. The Unanimous Guilty vote would allow the court to go to the next punishment for the respective crime. However, it had to be unanimous on all charges brought forward.

As the final Patronus hit the Coat of Arms, the Shield glowed a bright white before releasing the words: _Unanimous Guilty. _

_"_As it should be," Harry said happily. "That will get you 1200 years in Azkaban. Next, on the 26 counts of Torturing a Wizard, how do you vote?"

Again: _Unanimous Guilty_

"Well, that's 2240 years. I really hope you like bars and bricks. On the 11 counts of Murdering a Muggle, how do you vote?"

Once again: _Unanimous Guilty_

"3340 years! Maybe Lord Voldemort should have to told you how to become immortal so one day you could be free again. Finally, on the _78 counts of Torturing a Muggle_, how do you vote?"

Finally: _Unanimous Guilty_

The room buzzed. Everyone knew what was going to happen now. Harry Potter, the Hero of the Second Wizarding War and the destroyer of Lord Voldemort, was going to ask to court to sentence this man to death. How could they deny him? Didn't this man deserve it?

"Well, now that that is taken care of, I now ask the Wizengamot to consider this man for death. This again must be a unanimous vote. I would like you to remember all of the awful things that this man has done."

"That is great, Harry." Xavier replied seriously. "But, who is going to do it? I would assume that you would not make any of your Aurors do it? Should Miss Granger do it, since she is the Minister? I will not do it, nor will any of my professors. Will you? Do you want to be the one who does it? If you will do it, and you think that it is for the best, I will vote yes. But, if your plan is to sentence him and then make someone else kill him, I will not have any part in this."

Harry sank into deep thought. He remembered during his quest for the Horcruxes, he promised himself that he would save the Killing Curse for one person. But, Lord Voldemort was dead. Did that mean that he should keep his promise, or should it be forgotten since Voldemort was gone? This man deserved it. But, then another memory, came to him. The first night he had met Sirius in the Shrieking Shack. What had he said to them? What had he said, when Sirius and Remus had tried to kill Wormtail? _I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it because I don't reckon my dad would've wanted his best friends to become killers—just for you. _Was this true? After a couple minutes, he spoke up.

"Mr. Dolohov, you have been convicted of 7040 years in Azkaban Prison. I hope that each and every day you spend there is long enough to make you remember the horrible things you did. Guard Aurors! Please escort Mr. Dolohov to Azkaban, where he will spend the rest of his natural life. To the rest of you, I thank you for your time today. You are dismissed."

Harry quickly made his way back to his office. Once he was inside, he locked the door and took his place behind his desk. Placing his head in his hands, memories flooded back to him. _Fred Weasley. Snape. The forest. Dumbledore falling off the Tower. The Memorial Service after the Battle of Hogwarts._ When he finally came out of his stupor, he noticed how hard he had been crying. It had been a long time since he had thought about that. But, Antonin Dolohov was a different kind of Death Eater. What made him different was that one of those 15 Wizards he killed had been Remus Lupin, one of his father's best friends. Harry knew that was the reason he had been so angry this afternoon. Other Death Eaters had been presented before him and he had simply sent them to Azkaban, but Dolohov was different. Lupin was a good man and just like his parents, he would never really get to know his son. A knock on the door brought him out of his mood.

"Come in." Harry said.

"I would, but the door happens to be locked." Xavier Mitchell said with a laugh.

"Oh yeah, I knew that." Harry said, waving his wand at the door.

Xavier opened the door, his black robes billowing behind him.

"Hey Harry, how are you?" Xavier asked.

"I've been better."

"I am sure. I have a favor to ask you."

"Sure." Harry replied.

"Last night, after the match, Demelza and I were coming out of the team tunnel and a man came out to us. He said his name was Mercer Chaplin and that he was a friend of my family. Have you ever heard of him?" Xavier asked curiously.

"No, what did he look like?"

"I'm not entirely sure. He wore an all white Muggle suit, but that was basically all I could see because it was dark out. Oh, and I think his eyes may have been red." Xavier added.

"Red!?" Harry stood up with a start.

"Yeah, red, why?" Xavier looked upon Harry with an incredibly worried look.

"Ummmm, Lord Voldemort's eyes were red. Just been thinking about that a lot today." Harry said, barely opening his mouth and definitely not looking at Xavier.

"Hey Harry, Dolohov's going away forever. There's no way we will ever have to deal with him again." Xavier said confidently.

"Well, that's good. So, how did your date with Demelza go last night?" Harry asked.

"Pretty well, I think. There will at least be a second date, which is good because I still can't remember the last time that happened." Xavier said with a truthful smile on his face.

"Well, that's good. In fact, if you guys aren't too busy tonight, I am inviting some friends over. Hermione and Ron. Ginny will be there. So will George Weasley and whoever he's dating. You two should come over."

"Well, I'll talk to Demelza and see what I can do."

"Alright, well I have work to do and I'm sure the school could use you back. So, if you don't mind." Harry stated.

"Oh, it's no bother. Give me an update on Nurmengard when you can and hopefully, I will see you tonight." Xavier added appreciatively.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After a long day at the office, Harry was glad to have an eventful evening of fun planned. It had been too long since he had gotten together with his friends from school. According to Ron, he and Hermione were planning on finally moving in together, which after five years, Harry thought was about time. Ginny and Harry had lived together for quite awhile and he felt that Ron and Hermione were just being juvenile about it. They had known how much they liked each other for a long time and they had actually liked each other even longer. But, what excited him about tonight was the introduction of some new people to their group.

Harry had been friends with Xavier Mitchell during their time in the Auror Department together. If Harry was perfectly honest with himself, Xavier had done a much better job than Harry had during their time there. However, Xavier seemed to lack the drive to continue to move his way on up the ladder. Also, Harry was quite interested to talk with Xavier about his new job at Hogwarts. Only once before had Hogwarts had a Headmaster who had never held a position at the school before. However, Xavier appeared to be doing quite well at the school.

As he walked in the front door of 12 Grimmauld Place, he could smell something. What it was he was not entirely sure, but as he made his way to the kitchen, he quickly found out. With an amused smirk on his face, he watched as Ginny ran frantically around the kitchen, trying not to catch things on fire. Finally, unable to hold it in any longer, he let out a chuckle. Ginny turned with a look of obvious frustration on her face.

"What are you doing?" Harry asked, a incredibly amused look on his face.

"Well, we are having people over tonight, so I thought I would cook something?" she replied.

"No, I get that. But, _what are you doing?"_ Harry asked pointedly.

"Oh, the whole cooking-without-magic thing? Yeah, I dunno. I just that it would be kind of fun to try sometime."

"So? How did it go?"

"Well, how do you think it went?" Ginny asked as she crossed her arms.

"Judging by the smell, not so good."

"Yeah, I think I'm just going to call Tom and see if we can't get some of his stuff sent here." Ginny said, defeated.

"Probably a good idea. Well, I am going to shower and then I'll be back downstairs to help you out. Oh, so you know, I invited Xavier Mitchell and Demelza over. He was in today to talk with me about some things. I know he doesn't go out much and I got along with him well enough when we worked together. And I know we both get along with Demelza so that shouldn't be a problem."

"Ok, Harry, sounds good. Do hurry though? I may need help with some things before everyone gets here." Ginny replied.

"I'll do my best." Harry said with a grin.

"As always." Ginny said with an equally large smile.

As Harry ascended the stairs, he thought about the seven years since Voldemort's fall. He and Ginny had moved in only three months after the Battle. Harry had been given an honorary degree from Hogwarts days after the Battle and he had also been given his Order of Merlin, First Class the same day. Only three days later, Kingsley had contacted him about joining the Auror Academy. Harry, who had decided years before that there was nothing he would rather do, agreed immediately. Ginny had gone to play for the Chudley Cannons for a season after her last year at Hogwarts. After that season, she recieved an Owl from Gwenog Jones, who was incredibly interested in signing her to contract. Since then, she had played for the Harpies.

Things had been just as good among Harry's friends. Hermione had gone back to school, must to Ron's chagrin, to get her N.E.W.T.'s. Of course, she had done well, recieving the highest average score in over 50 years. Ron had also been accepted into the Auror Academy with Harry. Ron had received surprisingly good scores, being on points behind Harry for the head of the class. Within months, Ron was given his own team to handle relations with foreign Auror Departments and Dark Wizards. For once, Ron was no longer behind the shadow of the great Harry Potter, but had stepped out into the sunlight and was thoroughly enjoying it. Harry could never tell Ron how proud of him he was. Ron had stood by Harry and Hermione for years, and even though he had doubted Harry during the Triwizard Tournament and even though he had walked out on them during their search for the Horcruxes, he really was their support. Harry and Hermione had gotten closer over the years, but still, their friendship was quite small when you compared it to the friendship he shared for Ron.

After she went back to school, Hermione entered the Ministry. She was one of the first entires to the new Law Council of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Members of the Law Council were given the responsiblilty of looking over the current laws of the Wizarding World and determine whether or not the laws in place were fair to all persons under Wizarding Law. It was here that Hermione Granger made a name for herself within the Ministry. Here, she, with the help of Harry Potter and Minister of Magic Kingsley Shacklebolt, overturned every single Wizarding Law that gave immense favor to Pureblood Wizarding familes. In addition to this, she also helped create laws that severely punished those who attacked Muggles and Muggle-Born Witches and Wizards because of their ancestry. Finally, and possibly most importantly, Hermione, almost single handedly, release each and every magical creature from the control of the Ministry of Magic. Sentient magical creatures were given free realm as long as they did not wander towards Muggle homesteads. Non-sentient magical creatures, that is, creatures like giants and dragons, were released into the wild with charms placed upon them that prevented them from wandering too far from their home, as to prevent them from making contact with Muggles.

George Weasley had taken an entire year of following the death of his brother. Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes had been closed that entire time. However, about a month before the one-year anniversary of his brother's death, Ron visited him. Ron and George talked about the shop for hours. Eventually, Ron was able to convince George to reopen the shop. All of the Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione were at the Grand Re-Opening. There, before a single item was to be sold, George gave a small memorial to his brother. It was there that he had a picture of his late brother mounted just above the front desk. After thanking everyone, he then opened the store. Ron helped there the entire six months before he went to the Academy and still works there on the weekends. WWW became a world-wide hit. Within a year, he had locations in London, Hogsmeade, Paris, Berlin, Moscow, and Boston. He was one of the richest Wizards in the world and he didn't even keep all the profits. Each month, he gave 20% of his profits to the Frederick Joseph Weasley Foundation, a Foundation for small children at St. Mungo's. He gave 10% to his family and another 5% to Ron, who helped him the most. He gave 5% to Harry each month as a thank you for his initial contribution. Finally, he gave 10% to Hogwarts, where he got his start as a prankster. So, keeping only 50% of his earnings, he became ridiculously wealthy. But, each year, on the anniversary of Fred's death, he closes his shops worldwide. He will then go back to the Burrow and spend the entire day by his brother's grave, talking to him about the last year.

It seemed like an immensely long time since that day at Hogwarts. He hadn't been back since, nor did he have any real desire to go back. For he knew that there was the white tomb. The tomb of Albus Dumbledore. He couldn't stand to go back and face it, knowing that Dumbledore gave his life so that the entire Wizarding World would be safe from harm. But, something else was there, something far more ominous. On the far outreach of the Hogwarts Grounds lay another tomb. A tomb emblazoned with the Dark Mark. The tomb of Thomas Marvolo Riddle. After his death, there was a long argument over what to do with his remains. Some argued that they should be strung up and paraded all around Britain for all to see that the Dark Lord truly was dead. More wanted to throw his remains into a river and let him wash away onto some distant shore where they would never been seen again. Others still wanted to burn it, so that no one could ever look up him again. But, in the end, the opinion of one man was the only one that mattered. So, in the end, Harry decided that they would build another memorial for the Battle of Hogwarts. It would be smaller and would stand far away from the castle, so as not to taint it with its evil. There, they placed the body of Lord Voldemort, as a token to remember their victory. The tomb was made out of obsidian and gleamed black. Engraved in the exterior of the tomb was every person that died or disappeared during the Two Wizarding Wars. Over 1,000 names were marked into the side, non bigger than any other. The name of Albus Dumbledore stood next to the name of Severus Snape. Harry had this done as a constant reminder of who Snape really was. Harry had no longing to see the Black or the White Tomb as long as he lived.

Finally, after a long shower and a good towel, Harry was in his room. Unbeknownst to Ginny downstairs or anyone else, Harry did have a reason for throwing this party tonight. He opened his sock drawer and reached to the very back, where he pulled out a small jewelry box. Opening it slowly, he then removed the enormous diamond ring from it place and set it on top of the dresser. There, he stared at his, as though it may look back or say something unique. This was a day that he waited for for years. He knew from the moment he kissed her all those years ago in Gryffindor Tower that he had wanted to marry her. Now, he was sure he wanted to. So, he got dressed, put the ring in his back pocket, and went downstairs.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

George showed up first. With him he brought Angelina Johnson, former Chaser for the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Harry was slightly surprised at this. It was common knowledge that Angelina was far more interested in Fred than George during their time at school. However, Harry knew that no one there was going to make a big deal out of it, simply out of respect for Fred and George.

Xavier and Demelza were next in. As usual, Demelza wore something to do with the Holyhead Harpies, which made Ginny laugh. Again the usual, Xavier wore incredibly subdued colors, mainly black and dark blue.

Finally, Ron and Hermione were the last to show up due to the increase security around the two of them. As they spoke, there were at least eight personal guards watching the Potter residence. Minutes after their arrival, Tom showed up with some food. Normally, he would have sent it with Hannah Abbott, his assistant, but since it had been so long since he had seen Harry and his friends, he decided to make a personal trip. Everyone enjoyed the dinner and things started to settle into some simple conversation. But, of course, with as influential as this group was, work began to seep into the conversation.

"So, Harry," Xavier adressed him, turning away from Demelza for the briefest of moments. "A couple things, any plans for Nurmengard yet? And did you find anything on Mr. Chaplin?"

"Well, Xavier, we have some initial ideas for Nurmengard, but nothing solid yet. It may be a couple more years before it would operational. And as for Mercer Chaplin, nothing." Harry said. The look on Harry's face was enough to tell Xavier that something about that was not good. "I've gone back and looked at your family for years and I couldn't find anything that looked like him being in or good friends with your family. But, what is especially weird is that, while most Wizarding families have clear family roots back to the Bible, yours disappears around the time of King Arthur. Sure, there are some that do that but mostly everyone knows where they come from. And it looks like that may have been intentional. The records are misnumbered and there are just some things about it that I don't get. Actually, when I get to work in the morning, I am going to put someone on it."

Just as Xavier was ready to reply, there was a knock on the door. The two Aurors and Xavier all stood, wands at the ready. No one knew where Harry Potter lived. 12 Grimmauld Place was completely invisible. It was Unplottable and protected with everything sort of actually making the place disappear. So, hopefully, this was someone they knew. Otherwise, they had a real problem on their hands. Harry carefully made his way to the door.

"Who's there?" Harry asked with authority.

"Well, Mr. Potter, my name is Mercer Chaplin. I was an old friend of your father and Sirius Black, your godfather." At the mention of Sirius, Harry's grip on his wand tightened. "I have been away on business for some time. I do wish to come wish you a good night."

Harry turned to Xavier. Quietly, he pointed upstairs. Xavier, getting the hint, took Demelza with him and made his way up the stairs. Once Harry was sure that they would not be seen, he waved his wand and the door was opened. There stood Mercer Chaplin. His all white suit was replaced by an all black one of the same kind. No hat laid up his head, so Harry could see that he had perfectly white hair and a small, neatly-trimmed white beard. His eyes, however, were the weirdest part about him. One eye was of the lightest blue possible, another of a blood red. Harry gathered himself and with as confident a voice as he could put forward, he addressed him.

"Mr. Chaplin, please come in." Harry stated.

"Oh please, Harry. Calm me Mercer. I know your father wouldn't have wanted you to feel stiff around me." The smile on his face was enormous. But, it unnerved Harry as much as his eyes. It made him look plastic and forcibly reminded Harry of the Lord Voldemort he had once seen in Dumbledore's Pensieve. Shaking that nasty thought, he turned.

"Oh, but this is Ms. Hermione Granger, the newest Minister of Magic. Harry, I did not know you carried friends in such high places. And Mr. Ronald Weasley, one of your best Aurors if I am not mistaken. Also, Ms. Ginny Weasley, such a good Chaser. Did you know that I was at your match against the Cannons the other night? Simply fabulous how well you play."

His voices was smooth. But, it like everything else Mercer Chaplin did, unnerved Harry and made him increasingly more uncomfortable.

"Mr. Chaplin. Would you please sit down?" Harry asked politely.

"Oh, I am sorry to say that I do not have time to stay. Maybe sometime in the future. But, now, I must take my leave. I do hope to call upon you again." Making his way to the door, he heard the stairs squeak as Xavier made his way down to see whether the coast was clear. Mercer heard it as well, as he turned to see Xavier standing there.

"Oh, Richmond, so nice to see you." Mercer said with a smile.

Everyone in the room, Mercer included, seemed to realize what he had said at the same instance.

"Richmond!? You know my brother!?" Xavier asked quickly.

"Well, yes. I met him awhile ago. You had been busy with something and I hadn't had time to meet you. So sad to hear him on the run of the law. Well, I really must be going." he said. And with that he was gone.

Harry and Xavier turned and looked at each other.

"Richmond. He has to be working with my brother." Xavier said quite subdued.

"I know. Now I have something else that I need to look at while at work tomorrow." Harry said.

"I'll be in to help you. At least for this week, the school can spare me." Xavier add forcefully.

"Are you sure?" Harry asked.

"Yes."

The party dissipated quickly. Within minutes, everyone was gone. The night hadn't gone even close to the plan and so Harry decided he would just have to wait a little while longer to execute his plan. As he laid in bed that evening, all he could think about was that red eye. Thinking back, it was like once again looking into those eyes. The very last pair of eyes he ever wanted to look into again.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As everyone from the party left and the light were turned off at 12 Grimmauld Place, two men stood across the street. Each of them was equally silent. Finally, the older of the two broke the silence.

"They know I'm working with you." he stated.

"How?"

"I saw your brother and accidentally slipped up with the names."

"Oh well, so they know, it would have happened anyway."

"True. So, which do we do first, the tomb or the offices?"

"Probably the offices. Maybe the tomb, who knows? It can always chance can't it?"

"Yes. It can. Do you think he will side with us when he comes back?"

At this, the younger man's eyes were more fearful than had been in years. "I certainly hope so."

"And if he doesn't?"

"Well, then buckle your seatbelts?"

Mercer Chaplin turned to Richmond with a confused look on his face. "What's a seatbelt?"

"Don't worry about it. It's a Muggle contraption. It's after your time. Or it used to be anyway."

"As are some many other things. Well, Rich, good night. And do stay away from your brother for the time being. I would hate for him to kill you before we could get our plans in motion."

Rich just stared off into the night. Mercer was gone.


	9. Crescent Moon

Xavier made his way into the Ministry of Magic like he had hundreds of time while he had worked there. It was like going back in time. There was one impressive difference. This time, Xavier would be going after the one person he was afraid of, his brother. And he wasn't afraid of him because he could lose to him. He was afraid to him because of what would happen if he won. If Xavier beat Rich in a duel at the end of all this, what would happen? If Rich really was behind all of those attacks, would Xavier be able to stop him? Or would he falter? It was a thought that worried him every time he thought of it. It bothered him to no end.

Shaking these thoughts for the moment, he made his way to the same set of offices he had occupied during his time in the Auror Office. In fact, he passed his old office on his way to the only office in the building that was even close to the same size as the Minister's: Harry Potter's. Harry had occupied this office for about two years. Even when he wasn't the Head of the Department, his caseload was such that he needed the extra space. Without anyone noticing, he knocked on the door and slipped into Harry's office.

Harry, who had already been there for nearly an hour, was hard at work. Files and papers were spread all over the desk. The thought occurred to Xavier that magic had done a lot of things but apparently it hadn't limited the need for paperwork. Hardly surpressing a smile, he took a seat opposite Harry.

"Good morning, Professor." Harry said without looking up.

"Honestly, Harry, I only allow the students to call me Professor and you know that." replied Xavier with a smile. "So, did you find anything?"

The look on Harry's face gave him his answer.

"Absolutely nothing. I have been here for an hour looking at everything I can think of."

"Did you check the Hall of Records?"

"Not yet, more than wanting to know about this man's family, I want to know how he is supposedly attached to both of ours. But, thankfully, I had one of Hermione's bodyguards stay late last night. He got this."

Harry handed over a small photograph. It was of two men. They appeared to be standing in the area directly across from Harry's apartment. One of the was easily recognized as Mercer Chaplin, their person of interest. Unfortunately, the other was also completely unmistakable. It was Rich.

"This assures it. They have to be working together. What's the plan?" Xavier knew he was going to sleep much this week. In fact, he would be lucky to catch any sleep at all.

"I don't have one. There isn't a Mercer Chaplin in any Ministry listings. Unfortunately, you don't have to put your name in those, so they are unreliable. So, while we may be lucky and catch something down in the Hall of Records, currently we have no way to track him down." Harry said grimly.

"Well, what if at the end of the day, you cancelled all other cases and put everyone on these two?" Xavier suggested.

"Currently, they aren't that important. There are vampires from Germany and Romania that are being really tricky in Southern Wales right now and we need to focus our attention there."

"Well, what if we told the public that all the Aurors were chasing after them?"

The look on Harry's face was one of complete confusion.

"But, the public would know that we weren't. They remember when Sirius Black got out. They had nearly every single Ministry member looking after him. After the Second Wizarding War, they would expect the same for these two."

"Sure, but it wouldn't last that long. See, my thought is that if we tell every major Wizarding News outlet in Europe that we are putting every single Auror on these two, it will get out quickly. It will also get to my brother and Chaplin. Maybe under that kind of pressure, they screw up. If they don't, maybe it forces them into hiding and say that more pressing matters take precedent. Either way, the public will be happy and we have a chance to slow any plans they may have to a halt."

"It's a good idea. If, at the end of the workday, we're not anywhere near finding any new information, we put out the word that we're putting the all out offensive on them. Wow, I never thought I would see myself playing the publicity. I used to hate that." Harry said with a truthful smile.

"Well, things change. You grow up. You understand more. Now, how about we got to the Hall of Records and see what they have on this guy."

Both men stood and made their way to the elevator to go to the Hall of Records.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Hall of Records was a new addition to the Ministry Building. It sat nearly ten stories below the rest of the building and was incredibly well guarded. Only one party was allowed in at a time. Any information ever recorded was sent there. Its logs went back as far as the legends of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Every family in the British Isles had a folder there. If a member was married into another family, their files were then transferred to their new family.

Harry and Xavier made their way off the lift and into the Hall Lobby. There were various levels of clearance for the Hall. The most basic was called Family Clearance, which meant that the party involved was allowed to look at only his or her's own family. The next highest was Ministry Clearance. This was for Ministry Workers who needed files on offenders and people of the like. However, they had to have a pass signed by either their Head of Department or the Minister of Magic to access files outside of their family. Following that was Head Clearance. A Head of Department has clearance to obtain the records of any person who works for them or any person under investigation by their Department. Next was Minister Clearance, a general level of clearance for the Minister of Magic, which includes everything in the Main Hall. However, there is a smaller and much more guarded chamber behind the Main Hall known simply as The Great Hall. Only people with Elite Clearance may enter The Great Hall. Not even the Minister may access The Great Hall without access. Access is granted to a witch or wizard by the Wizengamot. Only a handful of people have access to the Great Hall at any one time. Both Xavier and Harry have access as incredibly worthy and influential wizards. Any information what known by the Ministry could be accessed by them.

Once in the Hall Lobby, Xavier and Harry made their way to the front desk.

With an authoritative voice, Xavier stated: "My name is Xavier Mitchell, Auror and Headmaster of Hogwarts. This is Harry Potter, Head of the Auror Department. We should like to retrieve some files from The Great Hall."

The Lobby went silent. Very rarely did anyone come asking into the Great Hall. Judging by the reaction of the man behind the desk, he had never seen anyone do it. Realizing what he had to do, he snapped out of stupor and went to find his boss. He returned with a man both Xavier and Harry knew very well.

"Dean Thomas?" they said in unison.

The few years after Hogwarts had done little, if anything, to improve his once slender build. While quite obviously the same person Harry had spent six years living with, he was noticeably bigger than his time at Hogwarts.

"Harry! Xavier! How are you?" Dead said, quite surprised.

"Well, I am quite good, although I cannot speak for the Headmaster here." said Harry with a smirk. "How have you been?"

"Great, I went back to get my N.E.W.T.'s and then decided to come work here. It's actually kind of neat knowing all the information we have right here. But, anyway, you needed something from the Great Hall? What is it?"

"Aren't we allowed to go in ourselves?" asked Xavier.

"Oh no. You must know exactly what you are looking for. It helps prevent abuse of even this power."

"Well, we need in. We aren't 100% sure what we are looking for but we do have a general idea. Now, Dead, I know that you may not like this. But, you also know that I can get Hermione down in here in no time. So, just let us in." said Harry.

Dean looked around at his employees, defeated. Silently, he motioned for them to follow him and led the way. The first room they went into was the Hall of Records that anyone could enter. It had a ceiling so high no one was quite sure how tall it actually was. The floors were made of mirrors and even though the room was hardly lit, it was brighter than a sunny day in there. But, the most impressive part of the room was the folders. There were cabinets of folders that went out of sight to the point where both Xavier and Harry wondered how you got files from the top. Dean rushed them through the Hall of Records and into a narrow hallway lined in gold.

It led to a much smaller and less impressive room. An incredibly aged man sat at a small desk at the end of the room. As he took his eyes off the ceiling, he noticed the group coming towards him. Hardly masking his surprise, he sat up incredibly straight and addressed them formally.

"Good morning Mr. Thomas, Mr. Potter, Mr. Mitchell. What can I do for you this morning?" he asked respectfully.

"Morning to you, Geoff. Mr. Potter and Mr. Mitchell would like some information." Dean said.

"Well, I would be happy to oblige. And what may that information be?" he asked, again with great respect.

"We need any information on any Wizarding Family with the last name Chaplin. Also, any information on anyone named Mercer Chaplin would be appreciated as well." Harry stated.

"Alright. I will see what I can do."

Geoff walked out from behind and began waving his wand. Immediately, folders started flying from everywhere. Somehow, Geoff knew which ones he didn't need because some came only to be send back quickly. For nearly a half and hour this occurred until, finally, a large stack of folders lay on Geoff's desk.

"Well, Mr. Potter, Mr. Mitchell, this is any information we could get for you. There is a Chaplin Family in existance now, no one by the name Mercer. Also, the last person we have records on named Mercer Chaplin was born during the Age of Merlin." Geoff informed them.

"The Age of Merlin? That cannot be right." Xavier said, with a confused look at Harry.

"What information do you have on this man?" Harry asked.

"Well, we have very little actually. He was born sometime around 425 A.D. He assisted in helping Merlin begin the Order of Merlin. He assisted a Muggle by the name of Arthur resurrect his kingdom with Merlin, as well. But, just as Merlin became famous, he disappeared. He was supposedly seen by his family sometime around 500 A.D. But, this can't be true, because it says here that he looked like he had hardly aged. 75 years had gone by, I don't think that can be right. That was the last mentioning of him ever."

Harry and Xavier looked at each other. Each knew what the other was thinking.

Xavier turned to Geoff: "What do you know about Merlin?"

"Well, without pulling his file, I can tell you that he was the Middle Age's Albus Dumbledore. Very interested in Muggle Rights. But, also he was said to be incredibly arrogant. He was kind of like You-Know-Who. He believed that death was a fault in the way of things and sought to figure out a way to stop it. It is actually a belief held by many that he did the first experimentation with some forms of Dark Magic that may extend life. Necromancy, Horcruxes, stuff like that. He also believed that Wizarding World would go to hell if he died. Again, part of that whole 'God Complex' he had. No one is quite sure when or how he died but most think he was over 200 years old when he did."

Xavier and Harry both sat deeply in thought. Then, Harry turned to Geoff and Dean:

"Thank you both very much. Is there a way to get copies made of these folders?"

"Yes, we copy them. But, the copies can only be read in the Ministry Building and only last for 30 days and then they fade forever. And then you just have a lot of spare parchment."

"Ok, can we get that sent my office please? If that's all, good day to both of you."

Harry and Xavier turned to leave the Great Hall. Once in the Hall, Harry and Xavier turned to each other.

"Do you think it's possible? That he may have created a Horcrux or something like that?" Xavier asked.

"Well, everyone thought Voldemort was dead. That didn't turn out to be the case. So, who knows? It definitely is possible."

"Well, that just stinks."

Harry and Xavier said nothing more as they made their way to the lift.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

On each level that the lift picked people up, Harry and Xavier noticed that people began looking more and more harassed. As they got off on their level, they saw why. Mass pandemonium raged inside the Ministry. Each of them assumed that most of the floors looked like this. Papers flew everywhere as desks flew and were destroyed. For a few moments, the cause of such destruction was unknown, until a wizard in very odd attire rounded a corner.

He was wearing the lightest blue robes you could imagine with a long black stoll hanging over it. On the stoll, was the silver crescent moon. But, perhaps the most particular part of his clothing was on his head. He wore what appeared to be a helmet that a Knight from the Middle Ages would have worn. But instead of the normal visor, he wore very odd mask. It was all white, but covered only one half of his face.

Wands at the ready and telling anyone who could hear them to make their way to the exits, they began their assault. Their attack was seamless. Neither one ever allowed an opening, almost as if they shared the same mind. A consistent stream of attacks fired from their wands at a torrid pace. Energy seemed to come from nowhere as they seemingly willed themselves to continue on. They reached the open lobby on their floor to meet nearly 20 men wearing the Moon stolls. Backing up to a wall to make sure no one could come up from behind them, they attacked. The 20 Men were nothing to match the speed and accuracy with which Harry and Xavier attacked. Within minutes, all of the men were incapacitated in some way. Then, they got up on the elevator to the Atrium and Harry turned to Xavier:

"Can you do Legilimency?" Harry asked.'

"Yes. Why?" Xavier replied.

"Is that why it seemed like I could see what you were thinking?

"Yeah, Legilimency can also be used to link minds. That's what I was doing. I can see what you are thinking and you can see what I'm thinking. It allows us to help each other better. Also, if we get used to it, you can think to me instead of speaking out loud, but we'll get on to that later."

"And I don't have to know Legilimency for it to work."

"Nope, just one of us."

Just then, the elevator door opened at the Atrium and revealed a horrible sight. All the fires were out and the front doors were locked. And in front of the main entrance were their two suspects, Mercer Chaplin and Rich Mitchell. Mercer stepped forward and spoke:

"Good afternoon, Mr. Potter and Mr. Mitchell. I was certainly hoping that at least one of you would show up, but to get both of you, that is quite incredible. As you can see, I would like control of the Ministry of Magic. Or at the very least, we would like the Lost Texts."

The voice he spoke in was different. Rather than being sleezy and smooth, this voice was boisterous and forceful. It made him seem frighteningly more dangerous. But, unlike Harry, Xavier seemed quite calm.

"All right, a few question. What is this group of second-rate wizards you have pulled together? Second, what 'Lost Texts'? And finally, has no one told you how ridiculous you look in those things? You look like a Muggle circus clown." Xavier said with a grin.

"Ah, Mr. Mitchell, I guess we should have introduced ourselves. We are Crescent Moon, a group of witches and wizards devoted to bringing Wizarding in the world back to the Middle Ages when Muggles were aware of Wizards and worked among them. To answer your next question, The Lost Texts are a set of Wizarding books that have been deemed to be exceedly Dark Magic. For nearly a millennium, the Ministry of Magic has pretended that they were lost. But, I know better and they will help me immenselly. Finally, this is the attire of the Knights of the Middle Ages, the era we so desperately wish to return to. Now, Mr. Mitchell and Mr. Potter, I believe this is my man here returning with the Texts. So, I must say good day."

"I don't think so. You see nowadays, we don't turn from a fight. And especially since you brought the fight to us, you had better fight us." Xavier said with his teeth bared.

"Oh, we will. Rich, Lucius, I see that you would be able to beat these two. Mr. Mitchell, Mr. Potter, I bid you a good day and I do hope you survive this encounter." Mercer said as he turned away.

"Lucius? As in Lucius Malfoy? As in that pathetic _former_ Death Eater who ratted all of his old buddies out? That Lucius Malfoy? Well, looks like it's 2 on 1." Xavier said with a smile.

"How old are Lucius? 60? 70?" Harry added.

"I am 68, thank you. And I am still quite capable of taking care of you, Potter." Lucius added as he removed his mask.

"Somehow, I doubt that. You couldn't even take me down when I was young and untrained. Now, I am one of the best duelist in the world. Good Luck." Harry said as he looked at Xavier.

The rage in Xavier's face was beginning to surface. Rich removed his mask to reveal a small scar covering his right eye. The look in his brother's eyes was also completely different. The reckless youth that his face had once shown was gone. Now, a look of controlled fury covered his face. The brothers stared at each other for what seemed like hours and then slowly each of them drew their wands.

"I really hope you know what you're doing, Rich." Xavier said.

"Oh, I do, dear Brother. I know that one day, the Ministry will be ours and you shall be dead." Rich said with an evil smile.

"If so, I hope that you meet your end shortly afterward." Xavier said, returning his smile.

"I will never meet my end, Xavier. That was the point of this little excursion. With the Lost Texts, we will never die. We can also do things long thought to be impossible. Like bring people back from death. You would like that wouldn't you? Bring dear Ma and Pa back? What about you, Potter? I bet you would love to see your parents again, wouldn't you? But, instead, I think we'll just bring back one of your old friends. But, before we do, I think I'll kill you both here."

Suddenly, all four men had the wands out and were firing away. But, while Lucius and Rich fought independently against them, Xavier and Harry fought in tandem. Their defense was impenitible and their offense had both Rich and Lucius on their heels ready to run. Finally, Rich was able knock the two of them back long enough for the pair to make their break. But, before they could leave, Xavier addressed his brother.

"Does this seem familiar, Rich?" Xavier asked mockingly.

He immediately stopped running and turned to face his brother. No longer was there any control. His face told the story. His anger was entirely out of control.

"What do you mean?" Rich asked angrily.

"Don't you remember? McGonagall's Classroom? How does it feel? It's probably been awhile since you have felt this humiliated. Does it drive you nuts to know that you can't beat me? That one day in the not so distant future, I will kill you. Mom and Dad didn't deserve what you did to them. They couldn't control what they did and you know it. And I will kill you for what you did to them."

Xavier's face was streamed with tears, but his voice did not suffer for it. Harry, for the first time, saw a look of pure hatred and knew in his heart that if Xavier was ever given an opportunity to kill his brother, he would do it. Harry knew Xavier well enough to know that he did not dwell on grief or anger, but that it still hurt him. This was the true Xavier Mitchell. This anger and this hatred and this fear, that was Xavier.

Rich, however, looked at his brother dismissively.

"You think that because you and the Saviour over here beat me once, that you will be able to do it again? You are a fool. And a blind one at that. I can't wait for the day that I get to prove that to you. Goodbye, Xavier."

"Goodbye and I will kill you as soon as I can."

"I look forward to it."

With this, Rich and Lucius escaped out of the main entrance and Disapparated at once. Xavier immediately sagged to the floor, his head in hands, sobs shaking his body.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A few hours later, Xavier was back home with Harry and just beginning to calm down after the events of the day. Finally, Xavier got the willpower to speak.

"Who's your friend?" Xavier asked calmly.

Harry had been thinking about who it could possibly be for hours now. Sirius? Snape? Lupin? Tonks? The list of possibilities was endless. Would they bring his parents back and then hold them for ransom? For the first time in a long time, he had no idea.

"I have no idea." Harry said grimly.

Xavier looked at his friend, just as grim. "Well, I do."

"Who?"

"Oh come on, Potter. Are you seriously this dense?"

"Apparently so. WHO?"

"Come on. If their goal is to eventually take over the Ministry of Magic, well then don't you think they may want to talk to the guy that did it?"

"But, who--"

"VOLDEMORT, YOU DIMWIT! They could bring back Lord Voldemort. Lord Voldemort."

Harry's heart dropped into his stomach. Why hadn't he thought of that? Of course, bring back the one person that could scare the life out of anyone.

"But, Lord Voldemort, his soul was completely mangled when he died. So would it still be able to bring him back?"

"I don't know. I suppose there are limitations for this kind of magic, although obviously I don't know what they are. But, I feel like it actually may be easier for them to bring him back. If he hasn't crossed over, then he's closer to being here, isn't he?"

"I guess. I don't know anything about this. But, if so, what do you think they're going to do next?"

"They're going to take advantage of the fact that I'm not at school. I would be willing to bet 10 Galleons that we got back and Voldemort's Tomb is empty."

"Well, we should go back and check."

"Sounds good."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

An hour later, Xavier and Harry stood in front of the Black Tomb of Thomas Marvolo Riddle. They had been there for nearly half an hour, but neither of them had made a single move towards the Tomb. For Xavier, all he could think of was his brother. His brother, who apparently had taken to Voldemort's lessons about the treatment of Muggles and Muggle-borns. But for Harry, the thought was completely different. James, Lily, Sirius, Remus, Tonks, Teddy, and all the rest of those he cared about. Could they possibly be in that much danger again? Well, they were about to find out.

Xavier waved his wand in a complicated set of movements that not even Harry understood. Finally, the door of the Tomb open quietly. Nothing could be seen initially as a thin layer of dust and dirt floated out of the Tomb. Finally, as the dust settles, they were able to look inside.

There he was in all his glory. His pale skin had gotten, if anything, even whiter. His long, skeletal fingers were draped across his chest almost as if he were praying. And those eyes, those red and evil eyes, they stared into the top of the Tomb, completely empty. Immediately, Harry was filled with a kind of rage he had never hurt before. Now, in this moment, he understood what it was. He would never again let anyone, not Mercer Chaplin and definitely not Richmond Mitchell, threaten those he loved. He knew that the kind of chivalry he had used during the Second Wizarding War would not work this time. If this was real, if Mercer Chaplin and his Crescent Moon were going to start a war or something of the like, Harry, Xavier, Ron, and Hermione would have to fight to kill.


	10. The Atrium

Xavier woke up with a headache. Walking to his desk, he wondered why he felt so awful. He had woken at his normal early hour to the same gathering of Owls outside his bedroom window. In conversation with the portrait of Albus Dumbledore, he had learned that he too had received the same flock of Owls each morning. Eventually, he said, he thought that people just got used to the way he ran things and they slowly tapered off to an occasional Owl every once in awhile. As he sat as his desk, getting ready to answer the few among these letters that were actually intelligent questions, he noticed one baring the handwriting of a certain Minister of Magic.

Immediately, a rush of memories flooded back to him. He remembered what had started as a mostly harmless investigation into one creepy old man had turned into a battle for their lives into the bowels of the Ministry. But, the worst part was his brother. Or what was left of him. He looked like a shell. The life in his eyes were gone. There was no longer any of that reckless abandon that had once inhabited his brother. In its place was a cold, calculating murderer. He was a glorified hitman. But, what also bothered him was what he had said to his brother. _I told him I was going to kill him._ He knew he had said it.

But, did he mean it?

A long pause as he thought about it. Then, finally being completely honest with himself, he answered. _Yes. Yes, I would kill my brother to prevent him from hurting other people. I remember what the Second Wizarding War was like. I never want that to happen again. And it looks like that's what he wants to cause._

Finally, the truth. Inside, he knew from the beginning what his brother had been after. But he never fathomed that his brother would have the courage to actually take on the entire Wizarding World.

Xavier looked at the letter with a cold distain. He knew what it would contain and sure enough, when he had opened the letter, it read nearly word-for-word with what he thought it would say:

_**Xavier,**_

_**I am calling a meeting of The New Order at six o'clock this evening. Please be in attendance, especially since most of what we have to talk about has to do with your family.**_

_**Thanks,  
Hermione Granger, Minister of Magic**_

So, it would begin. Last night, as he fell asleep, he thought of what the Ministry's reaction to this would be. Almost assuredly, every known member of Crescent Moon would be declared an enemy of the state. But, would Hermione risk open war? He knew that she was against preemptive action and that she would only retaliate when it became clear that war was the only alternative. Had they already reached that point? This group attacked the Ministry Building itself. Other than Hogwarts, no building stood for Wizarding Britain as much as the Ministry Building. So, had the Wizarding World already reached the point of no return? He would find out this evening.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

At six o'clock, in the same boardroom as the first meeting, the second meeting of The New Order began. Hermione waited for everyone to be seated before she began.

"Thank you everyone for coming. Something before we start, we are going to be here for awhile. I called this meeting tonight to discuss the possibility of going to war with Mercer Chaplin and Crescent Moon. So, for anything to be decided we must be unanimous in either case, either we do or we don't. No middle ground. Now, before we start, I am going to let Harry and Xavier, who were the ones who fought with Crescent Moon in the Atrium, to say something. Then, we will take an initial vote to see where we are." Then, she turned to Harry to give him the floor.

"Hey everybody. I'm going to try to be quick with this. I know we don't want another war. Me least of all. Which is why I am not supporting an open war. _Yet._ I am saying that we treat these men like criminals before we treat them like equals. We create task forces and we hunt them down. But, I do not support any military action against them."

With this short sentiment, Harry sat down as Xavier made his way to the head of the table. When he got there, he realize he didn't have a clue what to say. Suddenly, it poured out of him:

"I want to get him. I want to him so bad. As you all undoubtedly know, my brother is a member of Crescent Moon. He also appears to be Mercer's right hand man. This makes me beyond angry. This doesn't even make me sad anymore. Some part of me accepted long ago that my brother was this way. But, for the first time yesterday, I saw it in person. He is a murderer. Nothing better. Do any of you remember him from school? He was cocky, arrogant, reckless, and any other boastful trait you could think of. Boastful! There's another. At least from what I saw yesterday, he's none of that. He took orders from Mercer. My brother never would have taken orders! He would have dueled anyone who thought they could beat him, as he routinely did at school. So, I've also accepted the fact that he is no longer my brother. At least not as I remember him. But, I do remember one thing: he killed my parents. Just because they couldn't do magic. My parents were Squibs, both of them. He didn't kill them because they didn't love him, because they did. He didn't love them because he didn't care about them, because he did."

Xavier seemed to fill the whole room. He stopped for a bit, gathering himself and readying himself for what he was about to say. Suddenly, he exploded:

"HE KILLED THEM BECAUSE THEY COULDN'T DO MAGIC!! IT WAS NOTHING THAT THEY DID WRONG AND HE KILLED THEM FOR IT ANYWAY! YOU KNOW WHO USED TO DO STUFF LIKE THAT! DEATH EATERS!! DEATH EATERS AND LORD VOLDEMORT! YOU ALL REMEMBER WHAT THAT WAS LIKE! DO YOU WANT THAT AGAIN? DO YOU? BECAUSE IF WE DON'T STOP THEM, IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN ALL OVER AGAIN!"

With his last word, Xavier's energy left him and he calmly walked back to their seats. Hermione waited a small bit before getting up again.

"Thank you. Now, for the preliminary vote. I will not be voting so it will be up to you guys to convince each other one way or another. Now, here is how this will work. In front of the table is the Ministry Coat of Arms. It is used as a vote count in Wizengamot court cases. Today, it has been reconfigured to acknowledge 12 votes instead of 75. So, when we vote, cast a Patronus with your vote attached and it will spit out the vote count back. So, with all that, please place your votes."

Instantly, 12 Patronuses shot forward. After a brief period, the Coat of Arms replied in ghostly letters: _For War, 7; Against War, 5._

_"_Alright, thank you. Now, I would like to rearrange the room. This will be the only time that you know what each other voted. Please have those that voted for the war on my left and those against to my right."

A couple minutes later and after some snippy words over who sat closer to the front, Ron Weasley, Xavier Mitchell, Ginny Weasley, George Weasley, Neville Longbottom, Zachary Rhine, and Angelina Johnson sat on the left with Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy, Cho Chang, Fleur Weasley, and Luna Lovegood were seated on the right.

"Thank you everyone. Now, I would like to begin with one other person from each side that I will choose. Please, keep your thoughts brief and to the point. Now, Mr. Rhine, would you please step forward?"

"Uh...yeah...sure."

Zachary stood up quickly and made his way to the front of the room.

"Well, I am a Pureblood and I was in Slytherin at school. However, I don't believe in all that crap that Voldemort did. Because according to him, guys like Xavier and Rich Mitchell were worse than Muggle-borns because they were born to Squibs. Unfortunately for me, they beat me in every single class we had together. Now, my dad believes all this junk. He was a big friend of Lucius Malfoy, who we all know turned out to be a Death Eater. My dad never joined them but he certainly supported them, especially once they took over the Ministry. I can guarantee he is chomping at the bit to join these guys this time. He would want to make sure that his ideals stand for the next 1000 years. But, I know that if we go to war with them, he would be far less willing to join them. So, I guess what I'm saying is, not only do I believe that we should go to war to stop these people, I want to go to war to stop my family from being hurt."

Ending quietly, he sauntered back to his seat. Hermione stood up, reclaiming the place where Zachary had stood.

"Thank you. Now, Draco, if you would."

"I would prefer not to, Granger."

At the use of her last name, Hermione's eyes flared.

"Malfoy! If you don't get up here, you're fired!"

"Alright! I'm coming."

Malfoy took as long as possible to get out of his seat. When he finally made his way to the front of the table, he stopped and looked at his feet for a bit before he spoke:

"I love my father. Like Zachary, I love my father. We all know that he was there yesterday. Not as a part of the Ministry, but as a part of Crescent Moon. But, unlike Zachary, my father already made his choice. He's with them. And if we go to war, I go to war, against my father for the first time. I have the Mark, still. It grows fainter by the day and I hope that one day it will disappear. I was a fool then. I just wanted to impress my bigot of a father. But, I was foolish. It was by my hand that Dumbledore died. While I may not have performed the curse, I might as well have. I can't go to war against my father. Not by my choice, now if it gets to be that everyone else in this room votes for war, then I will too. But until then, until that last moment then, I cannot go to war knowing that I go to war against my family. The last war nearly tore my family apart and we were all on the same side. I can't deal with the fact of losing them all over again."

Draco was too strong to cry. Over the years, he had built up his emotional reserves to the point where he almost didn't have emotions. But, everyone else did, and everyone else had a least a little tear in their eyes.

Hermione stood over the table: "Please cast your votes."

For hours this went on. Seven o'clock, eight o'clock, nine, ten, eleven, midnight, and then finally before one o'clock in the morning a breakthrough: _For War, 11; Against War, 1._

Everyone in the room knew what this meant. It meant that it was time for Draco Malfoy to show his true colors: Would he rally against his father or would he break under his influence and join the Crescent Moon?

"Draco?"

Everyone turned to hear George Weasley, who had said only a few words sparingly all evening.

"Yes." Draco replied.

"It's because of _you_ that my older brother is horribly scarred. It's because of _you_ that Albus Dumbledore died before his time. It's because of _you_ my twin is dead. If you hadn't let the Death Eaters in to begin with, Dumbledore still would have been around to protect us. We would have been able to fight for the school before it was taken. So, I sit here and I ask myself. _Why should I trust him?_ _He was a filthy Death Eater. Why shouldn't I just pull out my wand and kill him where he stands?_ And then I remember, you paid for your sins. You have come to be a respectable member of the New Ministry, while your father was banished by the world. So, I ask you. Are you the new Draco Malfoy, a man of integrity and kindness? Or are you the old Draco Malfoy, a _boy_ who did what Daddy wanted? It is your choice which you want to be. But, as I vaguely remember hearing someone say one, "_You fail to recognize that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be." _Oh, now I remember, that was Albus Dumbledore, do you remember him? Then, listen to him, it doesn't matter that Lucius Malfoy is your father, it matters what you believe in. Do you believe in us, or him?"

Silence took the room for the first time all evening. There are been arguments, nearly fist fights and duels. There had been snide comments about someone's nose or about how greasy their hair looked, but for the first time all evening, no one had anything to say. _You fail to recognize that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be. _It ran through everyone's mind. For everyone in the room, that would be a motto for the war. Because at that very moment, Draco Malfoy turned to the head of the table and said:

"We go to war."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next morning, a press conference was called by the Minister of Magic. Everyone assumed that it would simply be to discuss the ramifications of the attack on the ministry the other day. No one had any idea what was truly in store.

A small stage had been erected near the statue in the Atrium and would act as the focal point for the morning's events. Seated from left to right on the stage were Xavier Mitchell, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and Draco Malfoy, who was seated there as a very public way to support what they were going to do. Wizarding reporters from all over Europe had been summoned to hear the news this morning. It was assumed that both the Minister and Harry Potter would speak. Finally, at exactly ten o'clock, Hermione Granger stood and took her place behind the stage's small podium. Raising her hand to ask silence, she calmly began.

"Thank you all for coming today. It is very much appreciated. As you all know, a terrorist militant group now known as Crescent Moon attack the Ministry Building two days ago. The group was led by Mercer Chaplin, Rich Mitchell, brother of current Hogwarts Headmaster, and Lucius Malfoy, father of Senior Undersecretary to the Minister, Draco Malfoy. We have reason to believe that they may have obtained certain objects that various Ministry Departments would deem "incredibly sensitive." If anyone has any information as about these items, contact the Ministry at once."

Hermione paused, taking a deep breath. Knowing the storm she would cause, she continued:

"The Ministry decided that as a preemptive action to make sure that nothing like this will ever happen again, we are going to declare war on Crescent Moon. Their actions are too similar to that of Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters not to be taken seriously. A series of actions have already been approved by the Wizengamot's Court that will enable us to get through this quickly and efficiently. First, we shall be forming Great Britain's First Wizarding Army. All Auror and Unspeakables will be a main part of it. Anyone wish to volunteer will be immediately accepted. On Monday, certain departments of the Ministry will be merged for the time being. This will allow for us to take certain willing members from these departments and put them to work. But, know this. If there comes a day when this turns into all-out war, we all must fight."

An incredibly silence took over the room. Seeing that no one was going to ask her anything, she went on:

"The Army will be separated into various class. The first is the General Class. This is where most of the volunteers will be placed. They will be scouts and spies and information gatherers. Next, the Mage Class. This class will be made up of Aurors and members of the Magical Law Enforcement Department. They will be used a storm teams, for close encounters with the other side. Following them is the Sorcerer Class. This class will actually be separated into two smaller classes: Sharpwands and Blockwands. Sharpwands will stick to long range assault and will be placed near the back of any battle. Blockwands will be defensive experts. Their job will simply be to protect those around them from harm. Often, in the heat of battle, attacking is the only thing you can thing about. As such, this is why we have the Blockwands."

The look on the faces of the people crowded around this small stage were empty at this point. No one had thought that so quickly after the death of Lord Voldemort that they would be at it again. A look of worry was on the faces of most, a look of fear on others, but those on the stage had neither. For all of them had fought through the Second Wizarding War and had no fear of Mercer Chaplin and his ragtag group of militant wizards. Hermione's voice seemed to portray that. As she went on her voice got stronger and stronger, until the faces in the room looked no longer worried or fearful, but strong and confident.

The final Class is the Warlock Class. Now, there are mulitiple levels of Warlocks. Warlocks are your field and strategic leaders. Junior Warlocks will be in control of individual unitis. They are Cho Chang, Luna Lovegood, Neville Longbottom, Fleur Weasley, and Angelina Johnson. Senior Warlocks will be their superiors and in charge of several units at a time. This members are Ginny Weasley, George Weasley, Zachary Rhine, Draco Malfoy, and myself. Next, the Master Warlocks. They will be in control of every field member on hand. They are Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley. Then, finally, the Grand Master Warlock. Within a week, we should be recieving forces from France, Germany, Bulgaria, and the United States. While they will operate on their own while they are here, they will still report to the Grand Master Warlock. This rank, for the time being, makes you the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces. This man is Xavier Mitchell, Headmaster of Hogwarts and Auror. Minerva McGonagall will take over for him until this crisis is over. I assure you. We are taking every action to make this end as quickly as possible. But, this action is entire necessary. Now, Grand Master Warlock Xavier Mitchell would like to speak to you."

Hermione stepped away from the podium as Xavier stepped forward. He had never really been very good at public speaking, but he knew that this going to have to be good. That this was going to need to be a speech that would, literally, rally the troops. Calmly, he took a deep breath and began:

"As I look out upon you, I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when our courage fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. No, today, we finally stand up for what we believe. We stand for ourselves. We look into the eyes of those who oppose and say to them: We will not go quietly into the night! We will not vanish without a fight! We're going to live on! We're going to survive! We will defeat you!"

The room, that had not ten minutes before been gripped with fear and worry, exploded with applause. The confidence that they heard in the voices of Hermione Granger and Xavier Mitchell was infectious. They now believed in what they had to say. They would go to war for them, and they would win. Xavier quietly lifted his hand and slowly silence crept back into the room, although a light buzz never left. Xavier continued his small speech:

"Thank you. Now, ladies and gentlewizards, I speak directly to Mercer Chaplin and Crescent Moon. Run. Run away and never return. We will hunt you. We will condemn you. We send the Hippogriffs on you. Because these people deserve the truth. They deserve it! These people deserve to have their faith in us, their faith in the Ministry reward. So, run. Flee with your pathetic lives. Because if you don't, we will chase you and I don't think you can handle it. A couple days ago, my friends, they attacked us. Our way of life and our very freedom were also under attack! We cannot let this go on. This must end. So, Crescent Moon, run. Because we will find you and we will stop you. We will not tire. We will not falter. And, we will not fail!"

If someone was standing outside the Atrium that morning, they had to have assumed that a bomb went off. The crowd simply erupted. Xavier stood behind the podium, a simple smile on his face, until the crowd quieted down. Then, he simply added: "Thank you."

But suddenly, an enormous voice sounded from the back of the Atrium.

"No, thank you, Mr. Mitchell."

The crowded parted all the way to the back to see Mercer Chaplin in his immaculate white robes staring at the stage. Suddenly, he launched himself up over the crowds and, doing a summersault that would suggest he was half his age, landed softly on the stage, wand at the ready.

"Hello, Mr. Mitchell. I was hoping to see you here today." Mercer said with a smile.

"Mercer, these people have nothing to do with this. Let them leave."

"Like I said, Mr. Mitchell. I only want to see you. I have no qualm with the rest of them."

Xavier quickly turned to the crowd and yelled: "Leave Now! NOW!"

Immediately, panic arose. Everyone in the room that wasn't on the stage flew for the door. People were knocked to the floor and some were nearly carried out to avoid further injury. But, no one on the stage noticed. All Harry, Ron, Hermione and Draco could look at was the face of Xavier Mitchell. Xavier Mitchell, the calm and fair former Head Boy. The level-headed Auror. The just Headmaster. Xavier Mitchell was lost in rage.

Finally, when everyone had left, Xavier and Mercer made their way down to the empty floor. The Atrium was silent, except for the footsteps of the two wizards as they began to circle each other. Suddenly, each of them launched their silent assault. Neither wasted their time defending themselves for their accuracy was so good that they could simply use attacks to shield themselves. Flashes of blue, red, white, and yellow launched across the room. Deflected spells knocked lamps off the walls and chunks off the brick wall were blown apart. Slowly, the started closing into towards each other. Within minutes, they stood just a few feet apart, neither of them acknowledging the frightening danger of what they were doing. Each of them were bleeding and sweating but a quick look into the eyes of each man told a different story. Their hatred was growing and neither of them dared break eye contact.

Then, without hesitation, Xavier reached up with his right hand (the one without the wand) and punched Mercer in the side of the face, catching him completely unprepared. He quickly fell to the ground, his wand falling several feet away from him. Noticing this, he tried to crawl this distance, but Xavier was quicker.

"_Petrificus __Totalus!"_

Instantly, Mercer's arms and legs locked into place and he stopped moving. But, Xavier, normally the gentleman, was not done yet.

"YOU TRY TO ENTER _MY_ MIND, YOU PATHETIC SCUM! ME? I AM THE BEST OCCLUMENS IN THIS COUNTRY AND YOU TRY TO COME INTO MY MIND AND TORTURE ME WITH MY OWN MEMORIES! YOU THOUGHT THAT YOU COULD JUST WALK INTO MY TURF AND BEAT ME AT MY OWN GAME! YOU ARROGANT GIT, I ALSO HAPPEN TO BE ONE OF THE BEST DUELISTS IN THE _WORLD_! THIS IS WHAT YOU GET! YOU DESERVE EVERY BIT OF WHAT I AM ABOUT TO DO!"

_"Crucio!"_

Mercer's locked body attempted to work and writher on the floor with pain, but was completely unable. Also, a muffled sound came out of his mouth as he tried to scream. Suddenly, Xavier waved his wand and many things happened at once. Mercer's wand came flying towards Xavier and he caught it, placing it in his cloak's inner pocket. Also, Mercer was released from the Full-Body Bind. Finally, the pain seemed to have stopped, as Mercer laid on the floor, sweating profusely and breathing deeply. Xavier turned to walk away. But, before he did, he turned to Hermione Granger.

"He is now a Prisoner of War. Have a couple Aurors transfer him down to the lower holding cells. No is to go in or out until tomorrow morning. Then, Harry and I will go in and interogate him. Harry will go in first and ask him nicely where his base of operations is. If Harry's way doesn't work, then I will go in. And I won't even begin to be nice. And that's if he gives me what I want."

With a sharp look in his eyes, he turned away from the scene and made his way to the exit.


	11. Necromancy

Harry walked into the Ministry far earlier and far more tired than usual. He hadn't slept very well the night before. Over and over in his head, he had gone over what was going to happen the next morning. Harry was supposed to go about getting valuable information out of Mercer Chaplin. Harry was almost entirely positively that there would be no way he was going to get that information. Then, he was simply supposed to leave the room so Xavier could have his way with him. He shuddered to think what Xavier may do with Chaplin. Harry knew that Xavier believed that this man was the reason for his brother's transformation from reckless delinquent to cold, calculating murderer.

Harry slowly made his way down to the holding cell area near the Wizengamot Courtroom to find Xavier already there. He had moved Mercer into a long interrogation room. Unknown to Mercer, one of the walls in the room had a particular charm placed on it that would allow people to see in but not see out. Xavier stood, dressed all in black as if in mourning, staring into the interrogation chamber. Slowly, he turned his head to acknowledge Harry's entrance.

"Hello, Harry."

"Hi, Xavier. Listen, there's something I need to talk to you about. I just don't feel right with what you are going to do. We aren't them. We don't torture those who oppose us."

"I know. But, this is different. You don't hurt the workers. You just threaten them. They will eventually break and give us all the information we need. But, the supervisors don't work that way. They think that since they control things in their own operation, they control ours. Of course, when Voldemort ruled, that was true. But it isn't, not anymore. Mercer doesn't control us. We control him, but that's not what he thinks. He thinks we're too afraid to hurt him, because he thinks he's in control. That isn't true. We are in control."

"Yeah. But, then, aren't we abusing our control?"

"Normally, we would be. But, in this situation, where our safety depends on us, we aren't. We are defending our own personal interests."

"Alright."

They stood, silent, for quite awhile, each deep in thought. Suddenly, Hermione Granger came rushing into the room, out of breath.

"Sorry. We need this information out of him quickly. There are reports that there is an army of his men standing outside London. They are going to start attacking if they don't get Chaplin back." She turned to Harry. "I'm sorry. I know I don't feel that good about this, but we need to do this." Then, she turned to Xavier. "Do what you have to do. Just don't kill him."

"Alright."

Xavier turned and waved his wand at the wall before him. Quickly, the wall disappeared and formed a hole just big enough for him to fit through. Just as he made his way through it, it closed behind him. Sitting in the corner was Mercer Chaplin. His hair was no longer neat, but long and unkept. His formerly white robes were a earthy gray from the dirt and dust on the ground. Blood sat, dried, just under his nose from the fall after Xavier's quick punch the day before.

Another quick flick of the wand and a table with two chairs was conjured from nowhere.

"Please, Mr. Chaplin, have a seat," Xavier said with a smirk.

Mercer slowly got up from the floor and, with great effort, made his way across the room to the table. No longer he looked like the man who had launched himself over the crowd or dueled one of the most dangerous wizards in the world the day before but more like the old man his white mane told him to be. Just as he got to the chair and was preparing himself to sit, Xavier made another whip of his wand and the chair disappeared. Mercer was caught by surprise and fell to the ground. Next, the table and Xavier's chair were both gone as he stood, laughing to himself.

"The great Mercer Chaplin. The man who led a group of wizards into the Ministry of Magic to steal some old textbooks. The man whose resistance of the Ministry was quelled in under a week. That's how history will remember you. At least that is if I have my way. So, now, enough with the niceties, this is how things are going to work. I am going to ask you a question and you are going to answer it. If you give an answer that I like, I leave you be. If you give me one that I don't, I hurt you. How does that sound? First question, what is your real name?"

Mercer sat up and looked at Xavier and simply said: "Mercer Chaplin."

With a strong wave of his wand, Mercer was sent flying into one of the back walls. The walls of the room shook with the force of the blow and Mercer laid in a heap on the floor again. Xavier approached him with another menacing smile on his face.

"Consider that a warning shot. Now, we know that the last Mercer Chaplin on record was born during the age of King Arthur. So, even though you are quite elderly, it obviously isn't you. So, who are you?"

Suddenly, Mercer shot up, a broken smile on his face.

"It won't matter. Not anymore. You see, you didn't quite understand everything. Maybe your brother can explain it to you. You see, those books that we stole, they contain magic that long ago the Ministry of Magic decided were to dangerous for anyone to learn about. So, they hid them. You think a Horcrux is Dark Magic? You haven't seen anything yet."

Xavier stood and waved his wand in a series of complicated motions. The table and both chairs returned to the room and Mercer was healed and returned to his former state of immaculate cleanliness.

"Please, sit down. I would like to hear more about this." Xavier said, the smile on his face lost.

Mercer made his way to the table and slowly sat down. When he saw that Xavier was serious about talking with him, he took his seat.

"What do you mean 'we haven't seen anything yet?'" Xavier asked, curiously.

"Those books contained magic that most people thought didn't exist. It does, it was just incredibly well hidden. Mr. Mitchell, have you ever heard of Inferi?"

"Yes, I have. A man by the name of Tom Riddle used them against us during the Second Wizarding War." Xavier replied.

"Well, Inferi are used by a branch of magic called Necromancy. It's basically the study of bringing back the dead. Well, you see Lord Voldemort couldn't bring them back from the dead completely for multiple reasons. Firstly, he did not have complete knowledge of the subject, not like me. Secondly, there are rules. A person that has died a normal death cannot be brought back to life. Also, a person that has died a noble death cannot be brought back. So, Harry's parents can't be brought back, because they died defending him. Finally, anyone that has been killed while still have a Horcrux could not be brought back as they are not completely dead. But, someone who has died after making Horcruxes and having them destroyed can be brought back along with those who chose to remain behind as ghosts. There's only one problem with this. Souls age. So, if we were to walk into Hogwarts and bring back one of the House ghosts, it would die because it is incredibly old. Also, do you remember Nearly Headless Nick? He would be brought back nearly headless. So, bringing him back would be nearly impossible. Finally, someone who has already been brought back using Necromancy is unable to be brought back a second time."

Xavier sat stunned for a moment. The thought that a branch of magic like this existed was incredible.

"Hold on, Mr. Chaplin. I will be right back."

Xavier left the room to see Hermione and Harry seated where he had left them. Harry was the first to speak.

"Not possible. Dumbledore himself knew nothing of this kind of magic. He told me once that there was no spell to bring back the dead. And he knew nearly everything."

"Harry, it is possible. When I took the Minister job, I was informed by Kingsley's memory after that meeting of some things that no one should know. I only tell you that to tell you that I knew about the Lost Texts. They were a seat of five books that dealt with awful kinds of magic. Things that you couldn't even possibly imagine. I wasn't even granted permission to see them. I didn't have a high enough clearance level. So, I guess what I'm saying is that it could be possible."

All three sat in silence for a long time. It was Xavier who broke the silence.

"Who could they want to use this for?"

"I'm not sure," Harry said. "Ghosts, Horcruxes, and people who were killed but not while defending anyone. That's their list. Who does that give us?"

"Well," Hermione started. "There haven't been any ghosts in nearly 100 years so I feel like they're out of the question. Lord Voldemort is the only one we know of that ever used Horcruxes so I suppose that he is a possiblity. But, there were tons of people who were killed while not defending anyone. I suppose that unless you perform an act of literal self-sacrifice, that you were just simply killed. But, that's tons of people. The Battle of Hogwarts alone would be an incredible list."

"Alright." Xavier said. "Well, I am going to ask him who they're bringing back. I got enough good information out of him. I'm done being nice. He's going to tell me who he's bringing back or he's going to be in a lot of pain. It's his choice."

Xavier turned and walked back into the interrogation chamber. Mercer was still seated right where he left him. So, Xavier pulled out his wand.

"_Crucio!"_

Mercer fell off of his seat and began rolling around on the floor. However, unlike the day before, he did not yell. He did not want to seem to give Xavier that kind of satisfaction. So Xavier pushed harder. Eventually, Mercer gave way and began screaming. Instantly, Xavier released him and let him rest on the floor. Xavier reclaimed his seat and waited for Mercer to slowly get up off the floor and take his back. When he did, the real interrogation began.

"Who are you bringing back?" Xavier demanded.

"I can't tell you." Mercer stated.

"And why not?" Xavier asked, as he again drew his wand, threateningly.

"Because, it was never my decision. Nor my idea." Mercer calmly replied.

"Well, then whose was it?"

"Why, your brother, of course. How he found out about the Lost Texts I'm not sure. But, once he did, it was all he could think about. He planned the mission into the Ministry. He was the one who knew where they were so he planned it. He also planned out who they were going to bring back."

"Well, Mr. Chaplin, do you have any idea who that could be?" Xavier asked menacingly.

"Well, he did mention several options. He said that Severus Snape would be interesting. Potter never really informed the world how he died, so Rich wanted to find out. But, I think the one he was most interested in bringing back was Lord Voldemort."

Silence shook the room.

"Why Lord Voldemort?"

"Well, I must say that most of our operation was based on Lucius Malfoy's information on how Voldemort ran his. Also, your brother seemed quite fascinated with him. He talked about how he had the right idea about Muggles and Muggle-borns. I was just kind of a figurehead for Crescent Moon, but it was Rich that started it."

Xavier, who had long ago accepted what his brother had become, was not shocked at this information. Quite to the contrary, he had assumed that it was the case for quite awhile now.

"Who are you?"

"Still bugging you, isn't it? Well, my name is Mercer Chaplin. I am a leader of the resistance group known as Crescent Moon. And I am a good friend of your brother."

"Why don't you exist?"

"I really have no idea. But, one thing I do know, your brother underestimates me."

Mercer's pleasant expression disappear and one of arrogance, hatred, and disgust formed on his normally smooth face.

"What?"

"You remember how only moments ago I said that your brother is in charge of Crescent Moon?"

"Yes."

"Well, congratulate him for me. Because you see, I have taken things into my own hands. I do not trust your brother, nor do I respect him. He believes himself to be the single greatest wizard on this Earth. Well, I can tell you that the first time I met him, I dueled him. His power is nothing compared to yours or mine. But, I let him believe that he was in control, so that I could get my hand on those books. You see, I think that by myself, I do not have enough clout to start a revolution. But, another man does. So, while your brother has been told to go to the tomb of Former Headmaster Severus Snape and bring him back to life, another group, a group loyal to me, has been given another mission. The Black Tomb. The tomb of Thomas Marvolo Riddle and Lord Voldemort. So, while I will probably be bringing back an ally for you in Snape, Lord Voldemort and I will be able to rule together."

As he finished, the wall next to them opened and Harry and Hermione entered. It was Harry who spoke.

"Why bring back Snape?"

"Simple really." Mercer replied. "After the information that you learned about Severus Snape on your thought to be deathbed, you have an incredible respect for the man. So, I will bring him back at the same time as Lord Voldemort for one reason, distraction. If Severus Snape is brought back and you are not there to save him, Rich's men will torture him and he will become our prisoner. So, you will go and you will save him from that awful fate. Meanwhile, my men will be working their magic with Lord Voldemort. By nightfall, I will be free of this place and Lord Voldemort and I will begin our conquest of the world."

"I hope you know that Lord Voldemort will never share power with you." Hermione stated.

"Oh, he will. I brought him back to life. I have used magic far superior than anything he ever tried to do. And so, he will respect me. And he will work with me. Or I will kill him." Mercer replied.

"And you really think you could do that?" Xavier asked calmly.

"I know I could." Mercer said.

"Ok, well when are you planning on doing this?" Harry asked.

"Well, what time is it?" Mercer asked.

"About eight o'clock in the morning. 8:04 to be exact." Xavier said as he read his watch.

"Oh, well, surprisingly enough. They were given instruction to begin 4 minutes ago. It's a fairly simply process, both groups will be nearly done."

"Thank you, Mr. Chaplin. We will see you later." Harry said as they made their way to the door.

"I dare say you will not, Mr. Potter."

The second the door closed behind them, they knew what they had to do. Calling an entire Auror task force, they sent that group to the Black Tomb. Then, Harry, Xavier, and Hermione would pick up Draco, Ginny, and Ron and they would go to Spinner's End, the home and resting place of Severus Snape.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

At Spinner's End, the small group made their way to the graveyard at the end of town. The town of was a shell of its former self. Everyone in the small group could tell that at one point it had been a thriving mill Muggle town, but that was years ago. Now, hardly anyone actually lived there and even less came outside. They quickly made their way through the fog to a small graveyard. Once they were there, they seperated to look for the grave of the former Headmaster. Suddenly, Xavier spoke.

"Wait a minute." he said. "There's no one but us here."

"Yeah?" Draco said. "Who else did you expect?"

"Rich and his men. Mercer said they would be here to resurrect Snape."

"Not necessarily. Look."

Harry was standing at the far end of the small graveyard. There in front of him was a large hole, just slightly big enough for a casket to fit through.

"Oh no."

"They never said they were going to do it here." Harry said.

"What does this mean?" Hermione asked.

It was Xavier who answered. "It means that we've been tricked. It means that more than likely Lord Voldemort will be back among the living. It means that somehow there's a leak in the Ministry and Mercer is out. He never thought to correct us when we assumed that he was still here. He sent us here as a distraction. He wanted us to be anywhere but two places: The Ministry and The Black Tomb, which is where we need to be."

"But we can't Apparate there." Hermione said.

"Yes, we can. I'm the Headmaster. As we get there, I can remove the charms around it. That way, when we get there, it doesn't shoot us back out."

"Alright, sounds good." Harry said. "To Hogwarts."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The six of them landed quietly just outside of Hogwarts Castle. Each of them then silently drew their wands and quickly made their way to the Black Tomb. They could see from the activity going on near the Tomb that they were already too late. Xavier, however, was able to spot the team of Aurors they had sent to the scene and joined them there. Once there, the lead Auror filled them in.

"When we got here, there was only one guy. But, all at once, guys just started popping up out of the woodwork. Some guys dressed in all-white with these ridiculous looking helmets. But, the other ones, they were all in black and they had these skulls masks on their faces. They all formed a circle around this guy and they have been chanting for like the last fifteen minutes. It's weird stuff really. I've never seen anything like it."

"Thanks." Harry said. "Now, we will all need to go out together. When I give the sign, go. Don't hesitate. If you see green, duck and return green. Once they play to kill, so do we. Until then, Stunners, Cutters, and Disarmers only. We don't need anything too crazy out here."

For what seemed like hours, the group of them sat there. _What is Potter waiting for?_ That was the only thing that went through Xavier's head. Why aren't we going now? And then, just as he said it, Harry gave the sign.

Mass pandemonium erupted. Xavier, Harry, Draco, and the Lead Auror all fought back to back, a perfect wall of offense and defense. For a few minutes, it seemed like they were going to win and nothing was going to happen. Voldemort would never have the chance to return. These men would be imprisoned and a chance for a Third Wizarding War would be gone. Then, suddenly, their hope was taken from them. Pops were heard all over the place and men in white and black made their way from the forest. Soon, the small group of only 12 was surrounded by a group of nearly 50. One of the men made their way from the back. It was Rich.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't my angelic brother and his ragtag group of friends? How nice of you to join us. It is nice, isn't it, Mercer?"

The small group turned to see Mercer make his way from the back of the other side of the group. His face shone and looked youthful. Suddenly, he lifted his hand and his wand, which had been stowed in Xavier's cloak, flew to him. Xavier knew that the trouble had only begun. But, he knew that Harry and the rest of the group's death would be quick, his would be long, torturous, and painful. But, Xavier's curiousity, got the best of him.

"So, Mercer, who are you really?"

"Ah, the million Galleon question! Rich would you like to be the one to tell him?"

"But, of course, Mr. Chaplin." Rich replied in glee. "You see, Xavier, we have a great bloodline. An incredible bloodline. You see, about 800 years ago, a man by the name of Mercer Chaplin was born. He was born to the two largest pureblood families in all of Britain. At an unusually young age, his magic was shown to him. By the age of 17, he was known as the greatest wizard in Britain. But, he despised the fact that he was always know for being the son of someone or someone's child. So, he decided to alter his name. He took the first part of his first name and the last part of his last name and put them together. 'Merlin' was his name. And from then on, it was all he was known as. At the time, this being before the time of the Internation Secrecy Statue, Merlin was good friends with Muggles, especially King Arthur. But, Mercer wanted to help his own people. He knew that there wasn't a single wizard on the face of the earth like him. So, nearly 200 years later, after doing everything in his power to obtain immortality, he broke and created a Horcrux. He murdered his wife to do it. But, unlike Lord Voldemort, who used special objects to him as his Horcrux, Merlin used a person. His son. Horcruxes, however, pass from generation to generation if they are bound to blood like this. And so, for years, Merlin sat, waiting for someone, someone of his rich and intelligent family to bring him back to life. Meanwhile, Muggles began pushing us back. They bound us to secrecy and made us hide our powers for our entire lives. Merlin became discontent with hiding on the sidelines and went to find the Horcrux. Of course, you can understand the problem this poses. Half of Britain's wizards have some part of his bloodlines in them. But, finally, he found the right one. Me."

"What do you mean?" Xavier asked.

"I was the Horcrux. Merlin found me and we used his infinite knowledge in Old Magic to bring himself back to a normal body. And here he stands today. Merlin the Great, here to grant his revenge on all Muggles."


	12. Awakening

_Pain. That's all he could remember. He had no bearing of where he was or what he was doing there and he knew no time or taste or smell or touch or any other bodily senses. The only thing he could feel was pain. Lots of pain. He had all of his memory and he had all of his experience, his mind was completely intact. He knew his name, both of them. He knew the one that his pathetic mother had given him, the name of a commoner. But, he also knew his true name. The name that had caused fear in the Wizarding World for half a century. The name of the most dangerous Dark Wizard ever._

_Voldemort._

_That was his true name. It was a named that he had earned and a name that he knew would mean fear for years after his death. Even in his worst possible defeat, even in his own death, he would instill fear. His most common thought since his death had been that of his death. His ignorance of Potter's power had obviously been his downfall. But, had it been preventable? Was there a way that he could have stopped Potter? _

_The fact that someone barely of-age had been able to elude his capture for almost an entire year still boggled him. He knew that he must have had help, but from who? Was Potter serious about Severus Snape? Had Snape, his most loyal and daring servant, really betrayed him in the end? Was his love for a Mudblood so powerful that he would dare disobey the greatest wizard to ever live?_

_And what about Albus Dumbledore? That foolish old man had been the bane of many of his cleverer plans for years and he had little doubt that the poor fool had someone managed to assist Potter, even after his death. The fact that most of the Wizarding World believed that he had feared Dumbledore was a joke. He had respected Dumbledore and he had understood how powerful he was, even if he was vastly undereducated in the ways of truly powerful magic. But, there had been really only one thing he had even been afraid of: his death. That was the simple motive behind everything he had ever done. _

_And he knew that he everything he had done had worked. Just months after his graduation from Hogwarts, he had tortured a former classmate of his who now worked at the Ministry of Magic into sharing any secrets about the Ministry that he knew. He told Lord Voldemort that there was a set of old magical textbooks that held previously untold Dark Magic. They were full of old magic, magic that years ago the Ministry had decided was too dangerous for people to know about. So, they hid them. They took them and put them in a small vault deep underneath the Ministry Building._

_So, Lord Voldemort killed this man and took his identity and for about six months after his graduation, he became a man known as Chester Moeller and no one was any the wiser. One night, he snuck into the Ministry and was able to access the vault where the texts were held. For hours, he sat and read. What he read excited him. He now knew that there was one last backup for his Horcruxes. On that night, he learned that those who died with an incomplete soul would not go on. Not entirely, anyway. They would rest somewhere in between this world and the land of the dead. Because of this fact, they could be brought back. But, they would be brought back with all the parts of their soul intact, which meant that if they died again, they would pass on to their final resting place._

_So while he had created his Horcruxes, he had known that even if by some stroke of luck, someone managed to kill him, he would not be gone forever. He had left his followers a specific set of instruction in case of his death. Unfortunately, Bellatrix and Lucius were the only ones left that knew that information. He would have to kill that Weasley woman for attacking Bellatrix when he came back. He knew that Bellatrix was just as serious about his goals as he was, if not more. She was the only one of his followers to truly follow his teachings. He was sure she would be in Azkaban because of her association with him. _

_Luckily, he knew of Lucius' fear of him. He knew that Lucius would be afraid of him, even after his death. And so, it would be through Lucius Malfoy that he would return._

_But, why was he even thinking about this? What had started it? Oh, yes, the pain that he had been experiencing. _

_It was gone. _

_He could hear people speaking. Something about a wizard named Mercer and another named Xavier. They were talking about how they had been tricked into doing something or missing something or something like that. He wasn't sure where he was but wherever it was, it was very dark. He couldn't even see his hand in the darkness. He felt down his side until he discovered something, his wand. Not the Elder Wand like he had hoped, but his old wand, the one he had been given as a child. He grasped it and said the words to simply light up his surroundings._

_"Lumos."_

_He was wearing the same clothing he had been when he had been killed. He lay there and noticed the black that he had worn that day had faded. How long had it been? Surely, he thought that Lucius would have brought him back within weeks. But, the state of his clothing led him to believe it had been quite bit of time. _

_However, this isn't what made him nervous. He looked at his hand and noticed that his former paleness was gone. So was the rubbery feel his skin had often had before. Instead, what he noticed was that his skin was quite colored and healthy. He felt his face and noticed a full goatee gracing his face. The top of his head was graced with a full head of hair. He assumed it would be black like when he was a child._

_Something about him was different. But, the thing he noticed most of all was something that he been without for some time. He could feel. He could feel as time ebbed and flowed past him and into the beyond. He reached out and felt the cold stone beneath his fingertips. But, distinctly more important than what he could feel, was what he couldn't. He no longer felt pain. All that he had become was pain, but now, the pain was gone. And he knew what it had to mean. He was back._

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He listened for anything. Anything that may give him a clue as to where he was. For what seemed like hours, he lay there, waiting for a sign and then he heard it. Some man was standing outside talking about how he had discovered him. But, who was he?

Then, just as the thought entered his mind, he was answered. The man says that he was the great wizard Merlin.

Could this be possible? There had never been a true date given to the death of the world's first great wizard. Over the centuries since his disappearance, there had been thousands of rumors about what had happened to him. Some thought that he had simply passed away. Others believed that he had disappeared into the mountains of Britain to wait for another day. Lord Voldemort hadn't been able to hear the entire conversation, but he knew that everyone had seemed to think he was dead. For some reason, he knew that this wasn't the case. Only a wizard of the power of Merlin could have possibly brought him back. Only someone with a innate knowledge and understand of powerful magic would be able to perform the feats necessary to bring someone back from the dead. He had known this before his death. The Dark Lord had known that if he had somehow been killed, it would take a wizard of immense power to bring him back. But still, he held out hope for the emergence of that wizard and so, it had happened.

For the first time in a long time, nearly half a century, the heart of Thomas Marvolo Riddle shivered with emotion. Although still as cold-hearted as ever, he felt gratitude towards the man who had freed him from his death. And for that, he would reward Merlin. He would allow Merlin to accompany on his journey. He would allow Merlin to rule side-by-side with him and together, they would rule _everything._

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Outside of the Black Tomb, silence was abound. Merlin? The wizard who has always been revered by the British Wizarding Community? For what seemed like hours, the group sat, consumed by their own thoughts. But, one by one, they all came to the same conclusion: Merlin was back. But, not only was he back, he was bringing back the Darkest Wizard to ever walk this earth.

The group of Death Eaters surrounding the group of Aurors and Ministry Executives had their wands drawn, aimed at the group of them. Xavier personally examined their situation and found it grave indeed. While each member of his group still had their wands in hand, it would be suicide to attempt anything at such adverse odds. Also, now knowing that the leader of this group was Merlin, the wizard of legend, he severely doubted that they would survive the encounter. But, finally, the most damning piece of the puzzle was the supposed resurrection of Lord Voldemort. If this was true, if Lord Voldemort had truly returned, then Xavier could see no way out, at least not for all of them, it was with this in mind that he spoke.

"Lord Merlin, I have a request for you." Xavier said.

"A request? And what request do you think that you can make of me that I would accept?" Merlin replied snidely.

"I ask simply that you allow my men to leave. This is not their fight nor their issue. If in the future, you have a reason to fight them, so be it. But, until then, these men were doing nothing other than following orders."

"So, then," Merlin replied. "Who would remain?"

Xavier gave some thought and then replied, "Myself, Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley, Hermione Granger, Draco Malfoy and Ginny Weasley."

"Very generous, but actually I only need you, Potter, and Granger. The rest of you can leave."

"Thank you." Xavier turned to the rest of the group. "Go. Warn the Ministry."

"Make sure you notify Percy." Hermione said. "He's the highest ranking official left. He'll take over in my place."

"We can't go. You guys will get blasted." Ron said, tears in his eyes.

"Not if I have anything to do with it." Xavier said with a smirk. "This is my school, remember?"

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For nearly two hours, the three prisoners sat, bound together. Merlin had started pacing and finally was content with standing of to the side, facing away from the tomb. All was quiet. No one spoke or dared breath loudly for fear of retribution of the great wizard. Each wizard was consumed with their thoughts: Had something gone wrong? Why hadn't he come out yet? What will happen if we fail?

For two hours, these thoughts burned into the minds, until suddenly, the tomb exploded. Rock exploded and hit various people around the circle. Dust and ash flew and created a dense fog in which the prisoners were hidden. Finally, after a few minutes, the dust settled and they laid their eyes upon their old enemy. But, somehow, their old enemy had been made new. No longer did he look like a ghost, no longer were his eyes the color of blood. No, now Lord Voldemort had an even more frightening look, the look of Thomas Marvolo Riddle, how Lord Voldemort should have looked. Nothing the three prisoners could have done could have prepared them for what they saw. But, when he spoke, his voice was the same, yet immensely more intimidating.

"Merlin's beard. It is you. Merlin, the Wizard of Legend. Am I to understand that it was you that released me from death?" Lord Voldemort asked.

"It was. I am pleased to meet you. I must ask you though. Death? How was it?" Merlin asked with an evil smirk.

"A pain to which I never plan to return." Voldemort repsonded.

"As I thought, now, we do have a slight problem. Xavier Mitchell, Harry Potter, and Hermione Granger decided that it was pertinent for them to be here for your arrival. I ask you, my ally and friend, what should we do with them?"

Lord Voldemort looked down and into the eyes of Harry Potter. Harry saw that while the eyes now were a dark brown, they still held that glare. Finally, Voldemort broke eye contact and spoke.

"I spent the better part of my second life trying to kill Harry Potter. Now, I believe that is not important. The Prophecy has been fulfilled and yet here I stand. So, I will not kill Potter or his friends. Instead, I ask you Merlin, how close to being able to control the Ministry are we?"

"We control it now. We made sure that we were ready to act when we resurrected you. When these three left, my men broke me out and we took over the building. Severus Snape is acting in your place. He will step down once you take over."

Lord Voldemort's face shown with glee. "Wonderful. I knew that you were lying about Snape, Harry Potter. And since I am once again in control and you are not, I only control your fate. But, I have already told you that I will not kill you. So, what should be done with you?"

The Dark Lord's eyes were filled with excitement as he turned and kill three of the men in white. With a huge smile on his face, he turned back to the prisoners.

"Killing three men. That just isn't expectable. So, as your punishment, you will each serve three life sentences in Azkaban. Merlin, if you would escort them there, I have things in London to see to."

"Of course, Lord Voldemort. But, before you go, I have already talked with two men who control a militant wizarding group in France and Germany. They would be quite willing to join us, if we were to overthrow their governments as well."

"It is something I will have to give consideration." Voldemort turned to his followers. "Malfoy, go with Merlin. Make sure that these three don't give him any trouble. Feel free to use any punishment methods you see fit. But, if you kill them, know that you and your family take their place."

"As you wish, my Lord." Malfoy said with a deep bow to emphasize his point.

Lord Voldemort then turned back to the three prisoners and simply said: "Enjoy your time in Azkaban, my friends."

Then, Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters turned and were gone to wreak havoc on the world.

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A couple hours later, the three prisoners of Lord Voldemort were in their cells. Their cells were located in the tallest tower of the prison. The only sounds that could be heard were those of the crashing waves against the side of the prison. No one spoke. There was nothing to speak about. Their cells faced the center of the castle. These were the only cells in the whole building that could see each other. The purpose was obvious: see, but not touch. But, eventually, Xavier spoke.

"It was too easy."

For minutes, no one spoke and then finally Harry replied.

"What do you mean?"

"We're supposedly the best wizards in Britain. That's what everyone says anyway. But, your twin and an ancient wizard tricked us. They were able to capture us without even a fight. WITHOUT EVEN A FIGHT!"

Xavier stood and began pacing in his cell. Finally, the calm headmaster broke. Everyone who knew Xavier Mitchell as the level headed one, as the one who would always keep his head, had they been there, they would have seen they were wrong. His hair was a mess, along with his robes. Bags lay below his eyes. But, it was his eyes themselves that gave him away. There was a craze in them. They showed just how far gone he was. But, also, they showed fear and loss. They held the secrets of a man whose brother had betrayed and beaten him. They showed a man lost.

"They were able to do whatever they wanted! And we couldn't do a thing! They knew exactly what we were going to do! Everytime!"

Silence. Well, almost silence, as a storm roared outside. Then, Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived, stood up.

"Then, we have to do something they don't expect. Something that no one would expect."

Hermione and Xavier looked at Harry. Finally, Hermione said, "What?"

"We have to break out of here."

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SIX MONTHS LATER

Time moved slowly in Azkaban. Almost daily, someone would come up and torture one of the prisoners. Each one of them spent most of their time sleeping. It was the only thing you could do that didn't involve large amounts of pain. Just being awake hurt. But, when they were forced to be awake, they spent their time planning their escape. In fact, they were nearly ready to execute it. However, they needed someone. Someone who couldn't spend a whole lot of time at the prison for fear of being discovered. The prisoners had learned that if they made a conscious effort to pool all their available magic, using an old magical theory Hermione had read about once, they could send out a Patronus message about once a month. The day before, they had sent what they hoped would be their last message from their cells. Now, they waited for their accomplice.

Later that evening, they heard something from below them. Someone was coming up to visit. After going through the necessary security options, he was allowed up the stairs. He walked slowly, as though he did not want to attract attention to himself. Finally, he reached the top of the stairs and came into the center of the room.

Clearing his throat, he spoke: "So, your plan is ready?"

It was Harry that replied. "Yes, we're ready. Are you ready to do your part.?"

He flipped his long, black hair over his shoulder and spoke over his elongated nose.

"Yes, when the time comes to do my part, I will do it."

"Good." Xavier replied. "I wouldn't want to have to beat the hell out of you once we got out."

"Very funny. Alright, is everyone ready? Good."

Suddenly, Severus Snape pulled his wand out of his robe and waved his wrist. All three cells opened up instantly. Snape then pulled three other wands out of his robe.

"They aren't yours, those are downstairs, but they will work for right now."

Everyone took a few seconds before Harry finally spoke up: "Alright everyone, let's go."

TO BE CONTINUED IN: HARRY POTTER, THE ESCAPE FROM AZKABAN AND THE WHITE TOMB


End file.
